Toradora-Volume 3

Toradora!:Volume3 51

Ryuuji suddenly splashed a big wave of water at Taiga, who quickly dodged it.
"Bwah!"
That blow was unfortunately taken by Kitamura, who had suddenly stepped behind Taiga
without them knowing.
"I've got water in my nose! That took me by surprise. Are you two fighting again?"
At that moment, Taiga...
"T, Taiga?"
Her crush had suddenly appeared in a pair of swimming trunks, glassless, and with a body
that even his fellow men would envy, with a face was so awesome that one could no longer
just call him "Maruo". Taiga quickly placed the hood of her tracksuit jacket over her head,
and zipped the tracksuit all the way up to her nose. She trembled uneasily, not daring to
make a sound.
"Hmm? What's wrong? Aisaka... it's Aisaka, right? I can't see properly without my glasses,
but such a small figure, you've got to be Aisaka! What are you hiding your face for? I was
about to say how that hair of yours resembled a little mouse. It looks good! Is something
wrong? You feel okay?"
It was a good thing he did not see Taiga looking agonized, twitching frantically,
"I'm fine, I'm fine," Taiga replied repeatedly. She even added "Go away!", something she
would definitely regret later.
"Huh? Did I say something I shouldn't have said? Why is she acting so cold? Takasu, did I
say something wrong? Tell me already."
Taiga didn't even notice Kitamura's troubled expression - or rather, her hood prevented him
from noticing.
Standing in the pool, Ryuuji could only shrug his shoulders.
"That's enough! Leave me alone!"
Taiga twitched her body even more, like a shark shaking in agony on a boat deck after
having its fins cut off. Finally, Kitamura was driven away by her.
Splash! Taiga washed her burning-red face with the swimming pool water.
"Uwaaaaah! I thought I was gonna die!"
"Hey, what do you think you were doing!? That was such a great chance to talk to him!
Don't get me involved if you go and complain later on!"
"No! T, t, t, that's because... it's embarrassing!"
Splash! Splash! She quickly splashed even more water onto her face, even her bangs were
soaked wet.
"... Hee hee hee, he said my head looks cute, right?"
"He didn't say it looks cute, he said it looks good."
"He said it looks good, right... Hee hee..."
"Didn't he already say he couldn't see properly without his glasses on?"
"He said it looked like a little mouse... that means it's cute, right? Hee hee!"
Taiga gently caressed her hair and smiled while tilting her head. Her face resembled a
sleepy kitten. As a result of putting the hood over her head, the hair, which she had spent a
lot of time tying up was now messed up, though Taiga didn't have time to worry about such

Toradora!:Volume3 52

matters.

Sigh, Ryuuji scratched his head. Even when summer has arrived and the pool has opened,
Taiga is still the same as ever.

At least it's still peaceful.

The pool surface glitters in flashes of blue, and the voices of laughter between friends echo
around.

It's a fine, windless day.

One could feel the footsteps of summer approaching.

And that is enough. Ryuuji glanced at Taiga, who caressed her bangs, and nodded, Yup.
This life is the best.

Taiga was swooning over Kitamura. As for Minori... she was learning some sort of crocodile
stroke, scaring Maya and the others playing with the beach ball. Kitamura, who held the
attendance list in his hand, was talking to Muscle Kuro. Haruta and Noto stared at Taiga,
not daring to approach. The homeroom teacher was staring intently at Muscle Kuro... Huh?
Where did Ami go?

"Oh my~ Aisaka-san? You've finally come? And I thought you would never appear, could it
be because your swimsuit is too loose and you didn't dare come out?"

Here she is.

Ami tied her wet hair in a bundle, which was dripping water everywhere. The way she
smiled under the sunlight felt exactly like a sun lotion commercial, yet the way she spoke
sweetly was pissing people off.

Ryuuji stared painfully at the two girls... Such a hard earned peaceful day has once again
been disrupted by the vicious showdown between the tiger and the chihuahua.

"Swimsuit size? What are you talking about? Are you still sleep walking and haven't woken
up yet?"

Taiga instantly returned to calmness. Her eyes were full of contempt, although her mouth
formed carefree smile. That's right! Right now, Taiga no longer had anything to worry
about (concerning swimsuits)!

"Forget it. Dummies would always say foolish things. Besides, I'm feeling a bit hot, perhaps
I'll take off this jacket!"

Taiga stood up and removed the tracksuit jacket that was wrapping her tiny body.

She stood proudly with her chest raised, her limbs fully exposed under the sunlight.
Although she was small in stature, her proportions were as delicate as a doll's, with no
extra flesh exposed. Renowned as a fierce tiger, Taiga now wore only a dangerous and thin
swimsuit...

The pool was silent for a few seconds...

"Oooohhhh!!!" Everyone finally exclaimed. Ryuuji was certain he didn't hear that
incorrectly.

"Ugh!" Ami covered her mouth. The glances of her classmate were now focused on Taiga's
white skin.

Like Ryuuji before, everyone had thought that In her swimsuit, the Palmtop Tiger would
look no different from a little kid. They thought that because she was thin and small, her
chest would be so flat and uncharacteristic that one would weep tears of sympathy for her.

Toradora!:Volume3 53

However, lo and behold!

"Oh man, I really don't want to stand under the sun... My skin will get dark."

Her melancholic eyebrows cast a shadow over her face. Whenever she turned her waist,
softly stretching her back and crossing her long legs, one could tell just how slim she was.
Yet she still had the curves of a female. On top of that... Well? What do you guys think about
those breasts? Hmm? Ryuuji's face revealed a smile of a death-row prisoner resigned to his
fate.

A perfectly awesome outcome!

They weren't big, but they weren't small either. In any case, her swimsuit bulged naturally,
forming a perfect cup-shape on both sides. Although she looked unfazed, Taiga still proudly
raised her chest, and bounced her soft breasts.

These were the masterpieces Ryuuji had spent all night working on - the "phony breast
pads".

After obtaining breast pads from clothes that Yasuko no longer wore, Ryuuji slightly
adjusted the thickness, cutting out a smooth curve before folding it and sewing the folded
parts together. It was sewn so perfectly that even an expert wouldn't have been able to find
the stitching. Finally, the pads were fitted onto the swimsuit with veiled buttons. Because it
looked so natural, even Taiga blushed after she tried it on. She even swore to Ryuuji that
she would definitely wear this on her wedding day (Even though was already 4 in the
morning when she had said that...)

"Hmph... Turns out she's got a normal figure after all, how boring! Anyway, her size is still
too small!"

Ami muttered quietly, quickly losing her interest and revealing her devious nature. "What
an idiot!" Taiga replied with her face turned away from Ami.

"Good work..."

Taiga gave a subtle V-sign to Ryuuji, to which he also replied with underwater.

The male classmates began to murmur amongst themselves, since most of them had
probably seen that "pathetic bust" photo from the previous year. "She actually grew that
much in the space of a year..." "Confirmation of breast growth verified..." "I definitely like
the tiger better..." It seemed like everyone had been successfully fooled. Taiga was in an
unusually good mood as she beamed brightly and returned to sitting by the poolside,
placing her legs into the water.

"Ryuuji, teach me how to do that just now. The thing where you squirt water out. I want to
try it on Minorin as well."

She asked while clutching her hands. Does she mean the water gun?

"Oh! First you hold your hands tightly together, and then you place them in the water..."

"Like this?"

Taiga obediently held her hands as Ryuuji instructed and bent forward, placing them into
the water. Gotcha... Ryuuji aimed at the face that approached him and...

"Like this!"

Squirt!

"Uwah! ... Why you-!"

Taiga wiped her wet face with the back of her hand, and glared at Ryuuji,

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"Alright then... Allow me to return the favor. Stay right there..."
Taiga followed Ryuuji and grabbed her hands. She squeezed tightly, Squirt! and fired the
water...
"Wah!"
... Into her own face. How clumsy. Almost to the point of being dumb. Ryuuji couldn't help
but laugh out loud, and prepared to move in for the kill.
"Yup! That's it! Why can't you do it? Huh? I wonder?"
"Wah! Wait! Uwah! Ryuuji! Don't you think you can... ahh!"
Taiga tried to dodge frantically, but because she couldn't open her eyes or stand up, she
could only shield her face with her hands. Ryuuji wondered if this was the first time he had
ever bested Taiga.
"You see, you see? Like this!"
As the old saying goes, pride goes before a fall.
"Hey! Stop bullying Taiga!!!"
"Whoa!"
Splash! Ryuuji felt a strong impact on his nose, as water entered through it and into his
throat. It took Ryuuji a few seconds to realize what had just happened, and a few more to
realize it was fired by Minori, who was standing quite a distance away.
"Ahahahaha! How's that? This is the secret power of the Kushieda Water Gun, passed down
through the generations!"
"H, how'd you do that!? Cause it sure damn hurts!"
"I ain't telling someone who bullied Taiga! Bleh!"
"Yay!" Minori made a V-sign, and skillfully swam to the deepest part in the middle of the
pool. As expected from the mad dog that rules supreme over the Kanto region... No, it has
more to do with her amazing arms and her natural athleticism in any sport.
"Minorin, thanks for saving me!"
Taiga's eyes glittered passionately, smiling at her savior, but Minori only took one glance at
Taiga and snickered,
"Fake Breast Trooper..."
Leaving with that comment, she submerged into the water like a crocodile on the hunt.
After her suspicious-looking silhouette went away, Ryuuji said,
"S, she found out already..."
"As expected from Minorin..."
Ryuuji and Taiga could not help but envision themselves trembling, standing shoulder to
shoulder by the poolside holding hands.
At that moment, at the other end of the pool... Splash! Sounds of splashing water startled
Ryuuji, who turned to take a look.
"Wahahahaha! How's that? It's not fair that you're the only one that's popular!"
"We're deeply unsatisfied with this biased treatment!"
Noto and Haruta smiled evilly by the poolside. Kitamura, who looked dejected after being
driven away by Taiga (or was he?), emerged from the water,
"Cough! Cough! Why you two... Come back here! It's my turn to strike back!"

Toradora!:Volume3 55

It took Kitamura just two strokes before reaching the poolside, and quickly climbed up and
grabbed Noto, who was trying to escape. Disregarding his status as the class
representative, he lifted Noto high in the air, and prepared to give him a backbreaker
throw.
"S, s, s, stop! My glasses, my glasses... WHOOOAAAAHHH!!!"
"This is summer, folks! Hah!!!"
Without hesitation, Kitamura raised his chest and tossed Noto towards the pool with his
back facing the water, creating a massive water column. At the same time, Haruta was also
grabbed by someone else on the other end, unable to move his arms and legs. He could only
wait to be thrown in as well...
"You're going in as well! Hell Cradle!!!"
SPLOOSH!
"Come! Let the festival begin!"
"You're all going in!"
In an instant, the poolside became hell on earth. Those already in the water were smacked
by the people being thrown in, and those trying to climb out were quickly kicked back in as
well.
"Kyaa! Stop it, stop it, stop it... Nooo!!!"
Even Nanako, who decided to have an afternoon nap, was tossed in. Without regard to male
or female gender, the battle royale had begun.
"Uwah! Isn't this a bit dangerous?"
Ryuuji exclaimed, as he was soaked wet by the splash caused by his classmates falling into
the pool. Just when he had climbed up with one foot out of the pool...
"Target spotted!"
"Go get 'em! My softball teammate!"
"Huh? Wha! Wha, wha, whoooaaa!!!"
On his right was Minori, while on his left was Kitamura. By the time he realized, Ryuuji's
arms were locked tight by the both of them, and he found himself flying in mid-air before
landing in the pool on his back.
Struggling painfully out of the white bubbles, it took Ryuuji some time to finally emerge
from the water.
"W, why you two...! Cough! Cough!"
The Softball Duo had already gone off in search of their next prey... "Wha!? No way!? You
got to be kidding meeee!!!" That sounded like Maya screaming...
Standing before Ryuuji, Taiga was laughing heartily.
"Yay!!! You finally fell! Feels great to be touched by Minorin's hands, doesn't it?"
She looked down happily at Ryuuji. It seems like no one would dare touch this Palmtop
Tiger... And it seemed like Taiga thought so as well, which explained her carefree look.
"W, why you... In that case I'll just toss you..."
Just as he was about to finish...
"There. You. Are~. Looks like someone still hasn't been thrown in the water~"

Toradora!:Volume3 56

A most malicious voice came from behind Taiga. This means, there's still that master of
troublemaking - Kawashima Ami.
"You...!"
Completely defenseless and caught by surprise, Ami lifted Taiga by her waist before she
could even react.
"Let's play~! Nothing personal, you know~? Here goes~!"
SPLOOSH! Taiga was thrown into the pool, creating a huge splash as she sank to the
bottom.
"Ahahaha! Serves you right-!"
"D, do you think there's still time for you to say such carefree stuff!? Hurry up and run!"
"Heh heh! Ami-chan would like to see that cocky tiger with a pathetic crying face with
Ami-chan's own eyes!"
Ami leapt about cheerfully, but Taiga did not emerge. All that could be seen were some
bubbles floating to the surface, which eventually disappeared as well.
"...Eh? Eh!?"
As Ryuuji wondered how long eternity would actually last, he thought, Come to think of it,
Taiga said something... what was it? I remember... that moment... Yeah, I remember asking
her, "Why do you hate the swimming pool so much?" And Taiga replied, "You listen
carefully! It's because I can't swim, that's why I hate it!"
Hmm... This means...
"She really can't swim!? She's gonna drown!"
"Ehh!? Really!?"
Ami's face instantly went pale. Ryuuji quickly dived into the pool.
After making three hard hand strokes, he finally grabbed Taiga, who was wrapped up like a
ball, and returned to the surface all in one breath.
"Buwah! Hey! You alright!? Hey, hey, hey, hey!!!"
"N, n, n, n, noooo! D, d, do-rrrr-n't...!!!"
Taiga began to struggle and thrash violently, trying to escape from Ryuuji's arms. Ryuuji's
chin was hit, and the two of them sank back into the water again. A lot of water was
entering her nose, but Taiga didn't seem to care. She was focused on escaping. Ryuuji tried
to lift Taiga up, allowing her face to come out of the water...
"This is baaa-rrrr-d! Hic! Hic! Cough! Cough! It's dro-rrr-ped!!!"
"W, what are you talking abo-rrrr-ut!? Cough! Cough!"
Water kept entering Taiga's mouth, but she still seemed intent on looking for something.
She didn't even grab on Ryuuji's hands, as her arms were clutched in front of her chest, as
if she was trying to conceal something...
"N, no wa-rrrrrr-y!?"
"It's dro-rrrrr-ped! There's only one side le-rrrrr-ft!"
When she said "dropped", she meant that, right? Yeah, that...
"EEHH!?"
That... one of the phony breast pads floated a few metres before them. With one hand
holding Taiga, Ryuuji swam frantically to retrieve it before anyone saw it...

Toradora!:Volume3 57

"Are you kidding me? Why didn't you say so if you couldn't swim!?"
"Ah!!! Don't come overrrrrrrr!!!"
Seeing how Taiga and Ryuuji were struggling in the water, Ami thought they were
drowning. She dived gracefully into the water in an attempt to rescue the sinking duo. Oh
crap! At this rate, she'll discover that Taiga has a pad on one side and none on the other!
God knows what she'll say if she ever finds out... Here it goes!
"WAH!?"
Ryuuji suddenly pulled Taiga into the water, and in a matter of seconds, pulled out the front
of the struggling Taiga's swimsuit in the most delicate manner possible.
He then stuck his hand inside the warm swimsuit, and placed the breast pad back to its
original position... There's no other choice, He felt like he touched something... But I guess
it can't be helped.
At that moment, Ryuuji knew at once that Taiga was roaring furiously in the water, as
massive bubbles began to erupt from her tiger jaws.
"Huh? What happened?"
"Ami-chan pushed the Palmtop Tiger into the pool..."
"No way! That's suicide!"
The classmates quietly gossiped, although things were not as simple as they thought.
"I already told you I didn't know you couldn't swim! Besides, haven't I apologized to you
already?"
"This isn't something that can be settled by a mere apology..."
Too exhausted to even roar at Ami, Taiga could only lean on the table, the eyes within her
damp hair occasionally glittering with tears.
Ryuuji could only stand petrified as he watch the two exchange words. She's right. This
isn't something that can be settled by an apology.
After that happened, Taiga only said two words as she was pulled out of the water, "How
mortifying." She not only meant being pushed into the pool, but also that thing which Ryuuji
did to her. This was done for her own good, although in hindsight, it did seem mean. I think
I may have touched, as well as saw, something that resembled a flat horizon...
"It's, it's own your fault. If it wasn't for that stupid move, I wouldn't have... have..."
"Wouldn't have what? Did something happen?"
"In any case, just apologize! Apologize! Apologize! APOLOGIZE!!!!!"

Toradora!:Volume3 58

Taiga was latched onto the table as she rocked it
vigorously. For the Palmtop Tiger, this demonstration of
wrath seemed to be lacking something. No one else
knew that it was because she felt absolutely humiliated
from her breasts (seemingly) being exposed... Besides
Ryuuji, that is.

"Really, what do you want me to do? Haven't I been
apologizing all this time already?"

Ami, who had been wearing her angelic mask while
being confronted by Taiga, was starting to get annoyed.
Hmph! A vague sneer appeared at the corner of her
lips,

"Come to think of it, I never knew Aisaka-san was such
a landlubber... How pitiful~ You poor thing~ You must
have suffered a lot, haven't you~? Like being asked to
stay behind in class because you can't swim?"

Ami lowered her voice and had begun her irritating
"fake sympathy" attack. Realizing that no one else was around to notice, she nodded while
speaking in a sweet voice "I see~." Paying attention to the glances around her, she
continued with something even more spiteful,

"Summer is here and you can't swim. Wouldn't that mean you couldn't go to the beach or
the swimming pool? What a shame! Takasu-kun, why don't we go together~?"

I have no idea what sort of logic she's using to come to such a conclusion. Ami had begun to
use her most effective method when confronting Taiga: Teasing Ryuuji, although Ryuuji
would ultimately be one ending up feeling troubled.

"Huh... why is Ami-chan inviting Takasu on her own...?"

"Why does it have to be Takasu!?"

Having witnessed the whole thing all along, the glances of the classmates suddenly turned
hostile. No, wait a minute... Ryuuji attempted to wipe his hands clear of this affair...

"That's right! Takasu-kun, my family has a mansion~! You want to come have fun with me
there?"

"Eh?"

Ami walked directly in front of Taiga and straight towards Ryuuji's side,

"Well, that's decided! Okay?"

The chihuahua tilted her head, her watery eyes glimmering. The mood in the classroom
turned dark,

"Why Takasu of all people!? How come he could go to her mansion!? Why, Ami-chan, why!?"

"Wait a moment! Why is this turning into me spending the summer with you!? Aren't you
supposed to be apologizing to Taiga?"

"Hmm? Was I?"

Seems like I forgot~ Ami gestured with her clumsy-looking smile, and softly knocked her
head with her fists.

Taiga suddenly stood up behind them,

Toradora!:Volume3 59

"Spare the apology! How mundane! You can go wherever you want and do whatever you
please for all I care, you lowlife couple!"

After finishing, she separated the crowd like Moses did to the Red Sea, and walked through
the aisle that had formed in between. Feeling a bit annoyed, Ami pouted, but did not stop
her assault,

"Remember to come, Takasu-kun! I'm sure we'll have lots of fun! We'll spend the whole
summer there!"

"Isn't that enough for you already..."

"Eh... you can't? Then... that's right, you wouldn't complain if Yuusaku came along as well,
would you?"

Taiga forcefully stopped her tracks, turned around and walked back in great strides past
the onlookers.

"Whoa!?"

Taiga remained silent, and grabbed the wrist of Ryuuji, who Ami was leaning upon.

"Oh my~"

"What now..."

Making another turn, Taiga now had Ryuuji behind her back. Ami seemed to have seen
something amusing, and gleefully squinted her eyes. Although it was recess time, the
classroom was so silent that one might of thought that the Titanic had just sunk. It was so
quiet that noises from the class next door could be heard. It was understandable, since for
everyone else, what they saw was basically "the Palmtop Tiger forcefully snatching Takasu
from Ami-chan's side"... They could only gulp in silence.

Only Ryuuji knew, the reason Taiga turned around was not because of him, but because
Ami said "Yuusaku is coming along as well".

"What is it now, Aisaka-san?"

"I can't allow you to decide on your own..."

"That wasn't what you said earlier. Didn't you say we could go wherever we want and do
whatever we please?"

"If it's for the whole summer, then it'll be another matter. But Ryuuji is in charge of my
meals, plus all other matters, so I can't let him go with you."

"Oh my... So you're basically saying 'Ryuuji is mine'? How bold of you!"

"I never said that. And who would, anyway? Shouldn't you go and have your ears examined?
Or should I help dig all the earwax out of your ears?"

Ami looked down with her lips twitching.

Taiga looked up with her chest puffed-up.

Ryuuji no longer remained in their sights; the situation was close to critical mass.

The first to move was Taiga. She took a huge step forward. A sweet smile appeared on her
beautiful, white face. She stood on her tip-toes and whispered to Ami's ear,

"If you go about starting funny business, I'll release that video of your 100 sessions of
monomane medley to the public... No wait, it's 150 sessions, right?"

Ami's face was quickly shrouded by a dark complexion, although as expected of her angelic
mask, she rebounded just as fast. Ami smiled gently, bent down and cheerfully whispered
into Taiga's ear,

Toradora!:Volume3 60

"If you do that, then I'll sue you for breach of my image rights... Not even a Palmtop Tiger
can escape the clutches of the law, can she?"

"Hu... hu hu hu"

"Ahaha..."

"Uhuhuhuhuhuhu..."

"Ahahahahahaha..."

Under everyone's gaze, the veins in their foreheads looked as though they were about to
burst.

"Stop this at once! ... Your fists will get hurt that way!"

"M, Minorin!?"

Minori charged in between them without regard for her life, and tightly held onto the fist
Taiga was about to strike with.

"Come on! Split up! Split up now!"

Shoving Taiga and Ami's chest, Minori separated the two until they were some distance
away from each other, and then started sermonizing them,

"Taiga, Kawashima-san, this is just too much! I won't forcefully ask you to be friends with
each other, but don't you think your relationship with each other is a bit too terrible? Not
even I can stand and watch this any longer!"

"But, but, listen to me, Minori-chan! It's because Aisaka-san treated me like..."

"It's all that stupid chihuahua's fault! Why'd you have to transfer to our school!? Why must
you live in this world!?"

"ENOUGH! Shut up, both of you! Let go, Taiga! Stop grabbing her collar! You can't start a
fight just like that! I know you're trying to win sympathy with your fists, in that case, let's
settle this in a sports duel!"

"EHHHH!?" Taiga was the only one that exclaimed. Including Ryuuji, everyone remained
silent, and tilted their heads in confusion. They couldn't figure out what logic Minori had
used to come to such a conclusion. Unexpectedly, Ami laughed cheerfully,

"Oh my, sounds interesting~"

She masterfully flashed her shimmering smile to the whole class,

"Listen to me! I want to let everyone understand that I genuinely want to be friends with
Aisaka-san! I was envious of how she got along so well with Takasu-kun, and I ended up
saying a lot of things that would cause a lot of misunderstanding with him. But I really want
to be friends with her! ... It's all my fault, or things wouldn't have turn out this way... But,
but... I'm serious!"

The mask that was nearly ripped off in the ruckus a while ago had now been skillfully
repaired with the application of some sweet words.

"She's right. How could Ami-chan possibly be interested in Takasu?" Hearing these
whispers, Ami smiled once again. Ryuuji knew that was a face that read, "Just as planned."

Taiga was the only one who couldn't accept this,

"Why!? Why!? What the hell is this? Don't be ridiculous! There's a limit to absurdity, you
know? Why must I have a sports duel with this chihuahua? Don't make me laugh! I'll be the
laughingstock of my family if I do that! Why must I do such a thing!? Besides, Minorin, why
are you helping her instead of me!?"

Toradora!:Volume3 61

"YOU IDIOT!"

"OW!"

Minorin mercilessly gave Taiga a karate chop on her head,

"Taiga, I'm doing this for your own good! You could still get away with your behaviour as a
student, but that won't work once you come out to work in society! Are you gonna just give
every colleague and co-worker you dislike a fist? Be a good girl, cause I'll be going to
Kawashima-san's mansion as well, and try and improve my friendship with her during the
summer! Right, Ami-chan? Kissy~"

"Wah! You really are bold, Minori-chan!"

Hugging Ami tightly, Minori held her white face and kept on kissing it. Some guys can be
heard whispering, "Being a girl's great..." Taiga begrudgingly puffed her chest and said,

"Alright! Fine then! Since Minorin says so, I'll accept your challenge! But if I win, we'll be
carrying out the premiere of the monomane medley!"

"Then if I win, Takasu-kun will be spending the summer with me in my family mansion~"

And you will end up all alone this summer! No one in the excited crowd had heard the
malicious whisper Ami added at the end.

"Now then, here we go! Badabadabadabadabadabadabadabadabadabada!"

It was amazing to hear a human tongue mimicking the beating of the drums so skillfully.
After turning up the atmosphere with her drum beats, Minori closed her eyes, and stuck her
hand inside a convenient store plastic bag, stirring her hands around and around. In the
bag were two pieces of folded paper of equal size. One of them contained Taiga's preferred
duel method, the other Ami's. Both had handwritten the duel they wanted to have.

"TADA!"

The drumbeats ended as Minori drew one paper from within.

Taiga, Ami, Ryuuji and everyone else all stared intently at the piece of paper that Minori
was unfolding. Everyone had their ears ready to listen to the contents being read out.
Under everyone's gazes, she cleared her throat and exclaimed,

"AND THE WINNER ISSSSS...!!!"

A lot of question marks appeared above everyone's heads. Was she trying to mimic a
foreign accent? What was that all about?

"Oh! You were trying to mimic the late David Jones, right? You know? The well-known
foreigner that represents Pan-Am [5] in presenting the Pan-American Sumo Trophy to the
winners! You make a good resemblance just now."

Kitamura's explanation just made everyone think How come you know such stuff?, and only
served to make the confusion worse.

"Just kidding! Anyway, fun time's over. Here it is! The duel will be decided by..."

Minori paused for a while, she first smiled towards Ami, and then frowned towards Taiga,

"'50 m freestyle swimming' as proposed by Kawashima Ami-san!"

"OOOHHHH!!!" There was applause everywhere. "Thank you! I'm so lucky!" Ami smiled and
bowed gracefully to everyone's accolades, while Taiga scowled. Ryuuji's terrifying eyes
flashed. This dueling method is too unfair for a landlubber like Taiga. Whispers were
already beginning to spread, "The winner's already decided."

Toradora!:Volume3 62

The Day of Destiny was set at the final swimming lesson. Might as well give this a mention,
it was rumoured that the dueling method that Taiga proposed but wasn't chosen was
supposedly "freestyle combat".

Chapter 4

"I'm really impressed by the students of this class! You're all so diligent, unlike the
first-years, who fell asleep after their swimming lessons!"

Standing on the teaching podium, the teacher smiled and looked at the students of Class
2-C. The current atmosphere in the classroom gave no indication that the students had just
returned from swimming lessons. Everyone was quietly listening to the lesson being taught
with their eyes wide open. Yet the teacher did not realize that within this silence, a peculiar
feeling was being transmitted amongst the students like an electric current.

Ryuuji was among the students with their eyes wide open. He was unable to read anything
in his textbook, as his unnerving anxiety affected his eyes' ability to focus. He only could
think about what had happened during recess.

How did it come to this? Why must I be dragged into all of this?

Oh man... As he was chewing on the end of his pencil...

"... Huh?"

A tiny folded note was thrown onto his desk from behind. It seemed like it was originally
intended to be thrown to the person sitting in front of Ryuuji, but it bounced off the back of
that person's chair and landed on Ryuuji's desk instead. "Oh shit..." The person behind
gasped softly. Just when the kindhearted Ryuuji was about to poke the person in front and
pass the note to him...

He noticed something written on the outside of the note: "To everyone in Class 2-C!"

Well, I'm a student of Class 2-C as well, so I suppose I can read this too. Using his textbook
as a shield, he opened the B5 size note. His usually dangling triangular eyes now gave an
even piercing glare as he read:

The 1st Takasu Cup! Featuring Ami-chan VS the Palmtop Tiger. 500
yen per bet!

P.S. Please skip through the following people when passing this
note:

Ami-chan, Tiger, Takasu and the judge, Kushieda.

"What the hell..."

He scanned the classroom with his glaring eyes. "Shit! Who's the idiot that leaked it...!?"
"Whoa! Damn that jackass!" Everyone exclaimed as they embarrassingly avoided Ryuuji's
glance.

Why these people!

Ryuuji bit his lips and thought, Aren't they going a bit too far? Since they think it's got
nothing to do with them, they're treating this like a show now, aren't they!?

There were many signatures indicating their intention to participate in the bet. A line was
drawn in the middle of the paper; the left side was labeled "Ami-chan", while the right side
was labeled "Tiger". By writing one's name under the label, one would be placing their bet
on that contestant.

Toradora!:Volume3 63

So far, everyone had placed their bets on Ami, while the column under Taiga's name was
completely blank. Everyone also wrote their opinions next to their names:

What is there to bet about anyway?

Of course Ami-chan is gonna win in swimming! The Tiger would just
sink to the bottom!

If it was a battle royale, then I would have bet on the Tiger.

The Tiger has no chance! The winner has already been decided!

By the way, now that it has come to this, Takasu-kun suddenly
finds himself having to make an

important decision. Why?

He's merely the sacrificial pawn in the political struggle between
Ami-chan and the Tiger.

So does this mean Ami-chan wasn't serious about him?

Of course she wasn't! Even if Ami-chan were to win, she'll
probably think of some way to get pass

the date at the mansion...

I think the Tiger and Takasu are serious. As for Ami-chan, she'll
ultimately end up with me.

Are you an idiot!?

Yeah right. Ami-chan is 'my' wife!

You can daydream all you like!

I'll be taking Ami-chan, thank you very much!

I'm so~ hungry, is it lunchtime yet?

I wanna join this battle for Ami-chan's heart, how do I sign up?

To arl: Ami-chan is mine, so sorry folks.

Are you trying to spell 'all'?

To Haruta: You can't even spell 'all', just how stupid can you be?

To Haruta: Are you only here because of cronyism?

Haruta... You really are an... No, that's not really important...
"What the hell... Just what on earth are they writing..."
These are all pissing me off. Ryuuji's mouth remained shut as his dangerous glare, which he
had genetically inherited from his father, glowered in vexation. While he never liked
scaring people out of the blue, he didn't like being treated as a laughingstock by the whole
class or being looked down upon either.
This was because the girls in particular had written the following:

Toradora!:Volume3 64

Though Takasu-kun looks scary, he's actually very indecisive.
That's why he got used. (LOL)

I agree. Takasu-kun = Hopeless guy. (LOL)

No matter what you do to him, he'll just keep his mouth shut and
accept it. (LOL)

Seems like he's tied onto a tight leash by the Tiger. (LOL)

Unforgivable! This is too mean! I've never realized that the girls have always looked down
on me. Not to mention that all those casually written "LOLs" at the end of their comments
felt like daggers piercing through his heart.
"Screw this... I'll show you who's a useless bastard..."
Take this! Ryuuji took out a thick felt-tip pen and wrote his name in a large font, under
Taiga's column, of course. Moreover, he placed six bets on her. 3000 yen! How's that, huh?
They probably never knew that tigers and dragons are always together as a team, huh?
Besides, Ryuuji himself was an expert swimmer. As there was still time until the showdown,
Ryuuji believed that if he gave Taiga special training, coupled with her amazing potential,
she just might improve dramatically when she swims against Ami.
"This way, I'll be the big winner in this bet..."
After muttering to himself, he had to do something else even more vexing - team up with
Taiga. Ryuuji expertly folded the note into a plane shape, and then turned to throw it
diagonally behind him.
"Hey, Taiga!"
"Huh? What... is this?"
Gasp! Someone silently exclaimed. The Palmtop Tiger - Aisaka Taiga swiftly caught the
paper plane that flew her way. After opening the note with her tiny white hands, she simply
said,
"I see..."
Her cherry lips twisted sinisterly as she said that, and revealed a smile of a savage beast,
while licking her lips with a blood-red looking tongue... Even her face was filled with blood,
and her pale throat shivered due to the excitement.
"Well then, can someone answer this question? Ah, how admirable! Aisaka, can you answer
this?"
Taiga stood up, her eyes were now filled with the predatory instincts of a carnivore,
emitting a glower that was bereft of rationality. She savagely scanned every student.
"A, Aisaka? Please don't wobble around in the classroom... Er... You can wobble all you like,
but shouldn't you try and answer the question as well?"
With her back towards the podium, Taiga moved along the desk aisles. One could almost
discern a vision of a two tonne tiger. Those murderous eyes were now filling the whole
classroom with their intensity. "Eek!" "I'm sorry..." Pleas for mercy echoed around, though
she smiled as she walked passed Ryuuji's desk. Their eyes met, confirming their
companionship. However, in the next second, she tripped over a chair and almost fell had
Ryuuji not caught her by the skirt. She continued to smile and shrug it off. As she walked
towards the podium, she tripped again, and stood up again with the same grin... Even in

Toradora!:Volume3 65

this situation, she never forgets her clumsiness.
Although she was completely oblivious to the situation, even Ami could sense something
strange about the atmosphere as she tilted her head and blinked,
"Huh? What happened? Why is she mad?"
Only one person remained silent... and that was Minori, who sat in the aisle beside the
entrance.
"Snore... snore..."
If one looked carefully, they would've discovered that her eyes were actually closed, but she
had drawn fake eyes onto her eyelids to give the illusion that she was awake.
"Taiga, I'll be supporting you all the way. You mustn't lose!"
"Of course I won't! I'll see to it that the stupid chihuahua gets torn apart like a rotten rag!"
Taiga quickly skimmed through a sports magazine that read "Aiming to be the Next
Swimming Champion" on the cover. She looked up and at Ryuuji with an annoyed
expression on her face, who was holding his cooking chopsticks,
"Of course you'll help me! If I lose to that chihuahua, do you know what will happen to
you?"
"Of course I do, spending the whole summer locked up in Kawashima's mansion, right? You
gotta be kidding me! Who's gonna do all the laundry, clean the bathroom, prepare the
meals, and all the chores? By the way, you ought to be helping out here! Go and mix that
bowl of vinegar miso sauce."
Ryuuji handed a glass bowl with the seasonings inside and a spoon to Taiga, while he
meticulously wiped the small table with his rag.
"What is this for?"
"The Udo [6] and seaweed."
"Ugh! I hate that!"
"But it's good for you! It can make breasts larger."
"Stop lying, you ugly ogre."
"U... ugly... ogre...!?"
After stinging Ryuuji with that remark, Taiga began mixing the ingredients. Sitting on the
floor like a child, she stuck her lips outwards and said in a frenzied voice,
"I'm sure you should know already, I..."
"Yeah, yeah... you're right..."
I've heard this topic too many times already. Ryuuji continued his chores, as well as
preventing Taiga from continuing,
"I know. You were going to say 'You can go wherever you want and do whatever you please
for all I care' anyway, right? I know already! You're pissed that Kitamura will be going as
well, aren't you?"
However.
"That's not it... Of course Kitamura-kun going had something to do with it, but the main
reason is because I don't want you to go to that woman's mansion."
"Eh..."

Toradora!:Volume3 66

Ryuuji glanced at the side of Taiga's face. She was getting moody with her cheeks puffed up
while mixing the vinegar miso. A question emerged within Ryuuji's heart,
Could it be...
Could it be that it's as Ami says, that Taiga...
"Who's going to take care of my meals when you're gone!? Of course, it'll be a different
matter altogether if you're willing to come back from the mansion three times a day just for
that."
"Ah! I get it. That's right, I see now."
Now why am I making such a weird face? Ryuuji whispered to himself, while having no idea
whether Taiga heard that or not.
"... Ryuu~ji~?"
Wham! Taiga slammed the bowl of vinegar miso on the table, and pointed the spoon stained
with the sauce towards the tip of Ryuuji's nose, and called out his name slowly as she would
to a child,
"Do you even understand your situation at all? You are a dog. My dog. Say it! Say there's
nothing more meaningful in life than to serve me like an animal! Say that you never felt like
you lived in the past sixteen years before you served me!"
"Wha!? Why on earth would I want to say that!?"
"Say it, you dumbass... When I ask you to do something, you do it as you're told!"
The depths of Taiga's eyes were as dark as a black hole as she gave a gloomy smile,
"You... saw my breasts, didn't you? ... And you touched them, didn't you? ... This humiliation
is too mortifying! Every time I think about it, my heart feels like it's about to come out of my
nose... For you to do that to me, you won't be able to repay that sin even if you were to
serve me for the rest of eternity! Do you understand? I'm the one who's the victim here...
get it!?"
Ryuuji could say nothing. For Taiga to say that, what else could I say? ... No, wait...
"D, didn't you see my nipples as well!? That's the same thing! And you said I saw yours?
Who would have the time to notice such things when we were close to drowning!?"
"What was that? I saw your nipples!? You mean those ridiculously black and filthy raisins?"
"Filthy raisins!?"
Ryuuji knelt down in despair at such an original insult. This was by far the most painful
insult he had heard from her. "Pfft!" Taiga even pretended to spit in disgust, and then went
back to mix the vinegar miso.
"Wah!"
She mixed too hard, causing the spoon to fly off and hit Ryuuji directly on the forehead,
who was still kneeling on the floor.
"Ow! ... Why you... hopelessly klutzy idiot!"
Ryuuji said in misery as the miso trickled down his face. At that moment, Yasuko, about to
leave for work, entered the living room,
"Oh my~ Isn't dinner prepared yet?"
"Oh, just a moment. It's almost ready."

Toradora!:Volume3 67

Ryuuji wiped the miso off his face and returned to the kitchen like an submissive housewife
who just got abused by her cruel mother-in-law.

As Ryuuji was filling the miso soup into the bowls, he heard the two people behind him
chatting.

"Wow~ Taiga-chan is mixing the vinegar miso already! You sure can be helpful, such a good
girl~"

"R, really?"

"Ya-chan loves udo the best~!"

Yasuko began to lean towards Taiga. The makeup on her youthful face carried an innocent
smile as usual. She seemed cheerful for some reason as she stood in front of Taiga,

"Well, Ya-chan was thinking it's okay for Taiga-chan to see them!"

"Eh? See what?"

Ryuuji was preparing to bring the tray filled with the miso soup and dishes towards the
small table, and found Yasuko facing Taiga with her back towards him. He looked, not
knowing what Yasuko was up to,

"Come. Have. A. Look! Since Taiga-chan looked like she wanted to see them yesterday~!"

He saw his own mother lift her shirt above her breasts.

"WHAT!?"

Barely managing to prevent the tray from falling on the floor, Ryuuji could only see
Yasuko's pale back, while Taiga stood petrified on the tatami.

Ryuuji could only hear Taiga moan uselessly, like a kitten that had been brutally
abandoned. No doubt dumbstruck by the amazing objects before her.

Speaking of which, neither Ryuuji nor Taiga could afford the time to be awestruck by those
enormous breasts.

Three days later and the second swimming lesson came along. The gloomy weather seemed
ill suited for swimming, yet both Ryuuji and Taiga were fired up,

"Alright, let's go Taiga!"

"Bring it on, Ryuuji!"

Ryuuji and Taiga appeared by the poolside; their eyes flashed in a white glow, emitting an
ultra high temperature murderous intent... sorry, exuberance. The two of them held hands
and puffed up their chests (one of them had seemingly fake breasts). The atmosphere
quickly changed. The swimming pool was no longer a friendly place to hang about, but a
solemn venue where one put their determination, honour and summer vacation on the line.

As Ryuuji and Taiga entered the pool, they seemed to be surrounded by a smoke of
venomous gas, causing people to naturally create a space in order to avoid them. No one
dared to speak to them... Everyone stayed far away while whispering to one another,
pretending to watch them casually.

Ryuuji squinted his eyes and thought, I think I have an idea what's going on. Everyone must
be thinking how on earth Taiga the land-lubber is going to compete with Ami. Still, Ryuuji
decided to ignore their gazes and said,

"Let's get started!"

"Alright!"

Toradora!:Volume3 68

Taiga nodded vigorously and communicated telepathically with Ryuuji via eye contact,
Don't worry about them. Let them say whatever they like.
Judging by Taiga's stamina, she should be able to complete 25 metres in no time.
"Listen up, Taiga. Let's start from the simplest of stuff. Try kicking the wall and let yourself
float up."
"Ryuuji."
"Yes?"
"When you say kick the wall, does that mean I have to let go of my hands first?"
"That's right."
Taiga clutched desperately at the poolside as she glared at Ryuuji's face. One could see
shades of blue on her pale face.
"I'll drown if I let go."
"..."
"My feet can't touch the bottom."
Looks like we'll have to start from the most basic of basics! So her feet couldn't touch the
bottom, huh... Ryuuji pressed his forehead as he attempted to modify his training
programme. After a few seconds, he said,
"... Alright, then let's start with holding breaths. Can you dip your head into the water?"
"Oh ho ho," Taiga laughed and replied,
"Seriously, don't treat me like a fool. Of course I can do something that simple! Watch!"
That's good then... As Ryuuji breathed a sigh of relief...
"T, Taiga!? Y, you..."
"See?" Taiga beamed proudly as she indeed dipped her face into the water. She held her
hands by the poolside, and slowly created bubbles as she sank into the water, with her nose
was just above the water. Her wide eyes rolled around on top of the surface and blinked
cutely,
"... Buhah! You see? I can do it, right?"
Hmph! She proudly puffed her phony breasts. Ryuuji once again pressed his forehead while
thinking of a way to explain the situation to her. After a few seconds,
"You know... when I said dip your head into the water, it should be like this..."
Ryuuji too held onto the poolside, and slowly dipped his face into the water and counted to
three as he demonstrated to Taiga the proper way to do it.
"Buwah! See? It's different from how you did it? Hey, look over here!"
Taiga had turned her face away, to which Ryuuji responded with a jab her to arm.
"Ow! That hurts!"
"Were you even looking at all!? Can you do what I just demonstrated?"
"Eeh!? Umm..."
Although Taiga still looked enthusiastic, her eyes wandered, not daring to look at Ryuuji.
You've got to be joking... Ryuuji suddenly had a bad feeling about this,
"Could it be... you wouldn't even dare to dip your head into the water...?"
"... Huh? You said something?"

Toradora!:Volume3 69

Ryuuji looked at Taiga as she turned her head and feigned ignorance and whistled lousily...
His premonitions had come true. The problem at hand was no longer about teaching her
how to swim, but rather getting her accustomed to the water first.

Ryuuji no longer had the time to press his forehead to think. He knocked Taiga on her head,
trying to get her motivated, but she didn't even respond with an aggressive "Stop knocking
me about!"

"A, anyway, let's just practice holding breaths! If you can't even master that, you can't do
anything else."

Just as Ryuuji was about to explain the importance of the basics, the people behind them
began to murmur among themselves.

"Did you hear that? She had to start from holding breaths..."

"No matter how you look at it, that's too basic..."

"Isn't that the level of a first grader?"

"She should at least know how to do that..."

Taiga seemed to have heard the whispers of her classmates, which badly bruised her
pride... She furrowed her brow, and her face turned a dark shade of red.

Ryuuji was about to turn around to ask those people to mind their own businesses, but he
was one step too late. "I, I can hold my breath. We don't need to practice that!" Taiga
pouted as she puffed her reddened cheeks and said agitatedly.

"Let's skip this low-level practice."

"T, that wouldn't be right..."

"I said skip it!"

With a firm determination, Taiga made the first step forward. She let go of the poolside and
grabbed onto Ryuuji's arms. Keeping her face above the water, she tried her best to extend
her body and kicked her legs, trying to stay afloat.

"Pull me forward! I want to first let my body get used to swimming!"

"I see! Are you sure about this?"

"Yes! Just do as I say!"

Taiga roared fiercely in a manner akin to an actual tiger about to finish off its prey. Ryuuji
had no choice but to turn around and slowly pull Taiga's body forward.

"Bleh! Bleh!"

Half of Taiga's face went into the water, forcing her to close her eyes tightly while
vigorously kicking her legs. Ryuuji was still feeling skeptical, Can you call this practice? As
she was holding his hands, Taiga was not floating at all. If he didn't hold on to her arms to
support her, she would simply sink deeper, with the splashes from her kicks slowly
diminishing as she went down.

"Bleh... Ahahahaha! It's working! I can do this! Swimming is too easy!"

Taiga is treating this as swimming already? She was obviously struggling, yet she still
pretended she was happy, lifting her chin above the water and smiling awkwardly.

Ryuuji remembered when he first learned to ride a bicycle back in first grade. Back then he
had just started to ride without training wheels, and he kept on losing his balance and
falling down. Seeing this, Yasuko told him, "Ya-chan will hold onto the bike and walk along.
All Ryu-chan needs to do is step on the pedals, okay~?" She then held onto the back of the

Toradora!:Volume3 70

bike. When Ryuuji tried again, with Yasuko supporting him from behind, he finally managed
to move forward without falling. Wow! This feels great! Ryuuji accelerated, and the bike
continued forward... It wasn't until moments later when he suddenly discovered that Yasuko
was no longer walking behind him. He had already managed to ride on his own, while
Yasuko was many metres behind him... She had tripped just after setting off with Ryuuji,
and was upside down on someone's fence.
Ryuuji thought to himself, That's it. I'll do that! I'll gradually loosen my grip, and then
eventually let go of Taiga's hands. She'll be going "Ehh? I can swim!" And I'll be praising
her "Very good, Taiga!" I'll do just that once we cross that line...
"Blublublublub!?"
"Whoa!?"
Although Ryuuji only loosened his grip slightly, Taiga had already sunk completely into the
water.
"Hey, you alright?"
"... Cough, cough! ... W, what just happened... Where is this place? Who am I? And you
are..."
Incredible! She's lost her memories! Just when Ryuuji held his breath for the worst,
"You let go of your hand, didn't you? Traitor!"
She stuck out her arm and smacked it hard onto the water, creating a huge splash towards
Ryuuji's face. Thank goodness! She's regained her memories.
"Hey, wait a minute! You're floating!"
"Huh? What!? No way!"
In other words, Taiga, who was in the centre of the pool, wasn't holding onto anything. She
wasn't holding onto Ryuuji, and her legs weren't touching the bottom, all the while keeping
her face above the water. Upon making this amazing discovery, they both exclaimed,
"Wow! Amazing! I can swim!"
"We can win this!"
Just as they were about to make a high five...
"... It doesn't take a genius to figure out why..."

Toradora!:Volume3 71

Bubble bubble bubble bubble... Like Poseidon emerging
from the water, Minori appeared right behind Taiga.

She was carrying Taiga with one arm.
"... Is this the land-lubber Taiga that Takasu-kun has
dropped into the water...? Or is it that land-lubber
Taiga...?"
It seemed like Minori had been supporting Taiga from
underwater a while ago.
"Eh, this land-lubber Taiga."
Minori shoved Taiga back towards Ryuuji, she then
bubbled back into the water like Poseidon and swam
off.
Just when Ryuuji was wondering where she was
swimming off to...
"Kyaa!? W, what!?"
"I must stay neutral no matter what! ... Since I've
already helped Taiga, I must also help Ami-chan as well!"
"Minori-chan? What's with you? Are you trying to be Poseidon or something? Stop that, that
tickles!"
Ami was playing with the beach ball with Maya and the others when Minori grabbed her
from behind. Is she getting the wrong idea about helping? However...
"As expected from Minorin to be impartial. A role model for an athlete!"
If Taiga says so, then I'll treat it as such! Ryuuji stared at the dazzling skin of Poseidon
while nodding vigorously in agreement.
"At any case, let us return to the poolside!" Ryuuji grabbed Taiga's arm and began walking
across the pool. Unfortunately, the classmates started murmuring again,
"Oh dear... Looks like she won't make it..."
"There's just no way she can win like that..."
"Swimming was never the Tiger's talent anyway..."
"She cannot compare with Ami-chan the mermaid..."
Taiga bit her lips while digging her fingernails into Ryuuji's shoulders,
"D, damn it!"
"Ow ow ow ow ow!"
"How can they say that!? They said I won't make it, saying I've got no talent... Ughhh... I
quit!"
"Stop being so bothered by what they say!"
"I don't need you to tell me that! But I just can't take this! It's too demeaning! I'm out! I
don't want people to see me like this!"
"Dammit... it's because they've all bet on Kawashima winning... They want us to feel bad
and force us to stop practicing..."
Looking around, they found the classmates that they were once so familiar with now were
their enemies. To make matters worse...

Toradora!:Volume3 72

"Hey! Aisaka! How's your practice going on? Working hard with Takasu, I see?"

Kitamura was cheering them on merrily by the poolside. Taiga couldn't help but moan
softly, revealing a strange face, not knowing how to respond. This was understandable. For
Taiga, the harder she worked, the more Kitamura would misunderstand her relationship
with Ryuuji... Besides, to the casual observer, Taiga was the one who started this duel for
Ryuuji.

Running out of ideas, Ryuuji could only sigh,

"You're hopeless. We'll have to find somewhere else better besides the school swimming
pool to practice, and let everyone eat humble pie when the fated day arrives!"

"Come to think of it, isn't there a heated pool in front of the station?"

"Yeah, we can go there."

Drip! An icy cold raindrop fell on Taiga's nose. "Cold!" "It's raining already?" The
classmates muttered as they began to leave the pool.

Today's swimming lesson had come to an end.

"Firstly... we have Sir Arthur Conan Doyle running along as the Olympic Torch Bearer...
Suddenly, a suspicious shadow appears! Hey, that's George Orwell! Oh no! The Torch's
been snatched away! Oh no you don't! yells Conan Doyle, and begins to throw himself at
Orwell, but Orwell casually dodges the attack, while spreading out his injured wings from
behind..."

"What the hell is with that literary figure battle royale commentary?"

"Well, it'll be necessary, won't it? As soon as I win, I will instantly hold a public premiere of
the stupid chihuahua's monomane medley DVD. Think of it as extra entertainment I have
prepared for her for that day!"

"So which one would she be? Conan Doyle or Orwell?"

"Both. She'll be playing both roles... since she's got limitless potential in that department."

"R, really?"

"I'm the one who thought of giving her those roles, after all!"

Full of expectations. Taiga was feeling unusually enthusiastic as she walked on the
rain-soaked pedestrian road while waving her umbrella around. Ryuuji was captivated for a
while at the scene, but ran to catch up with her when he regained his senses. He was no
less fired up than Taiga. Although they just had swimming lessons in the afternoon, they
were able to go straight to the heated pool after having dinner. This was because of the
powerful dryer in Taiga's apartment, which dried their swimsuits in no time.

As the sun set, the rain fell even harder. Every time Taiga swung her lavender-coloured
umbrella, the raindrops would sprinkle on Ryuuji. While skillfully deflecting the sprinkling
water with his own umbrella, he said,

"You've got to start practicing dipping your head into the water... Next you'll have to learn
how to float and kick your legs with the help of a floating board..."

Ryuuji recalled the swimming basics that he had learned back in swimming school when he
was young, and had earnestly thought out a training schedule for Taiga.

We've got time anyway. If we go to practice in the heated pool everyday, we'll be able to...

"Huh?"

Hearing Taiga's voice, Ryuuji raised his head... and then went speechless.

Toradora!:Volume3 73

"What? W, wait a minute! ... You're joking, right!?"
The gate leading to the heated pool was locked. We came all this way in high spirits, only
for it to be closed? When they looked towards the building, they were even more stunned.
Was it because of the rain? Or was it because of how late it was? All they saw were two
bulldozers parked on both sides, and in between was a pile of debris covering the area
where the pool was supposed to be.
"Huh... ehhhh!?"
Taiga screamed. Ryuuji noticed something by his foot. Picking it up, he realized it was a
sign, on it were words written with a marker pen... After reading it, he could only stand
numbly.

Thank you very much for your support. This heated pool is now
closed. Please look forward

to the new library being built here next year.

A library?
"Why the hell do they have to turn it into a library!?"
Taiga's voice reverberated throughout the dark streets. Hearing her yells, Ryuuji felt his
plan crumbling like the ruin and decay before his eyes.
Taiga can't dip her head into the water.
Taiga can't practice in the school swimming pool.
Taiga can't swim.
Taiga could lose...
If Taiga loses, I'll have to spend the summer at Ami's mansion. In other words...
In a room inside the holiday mansion, Ryuuji was sitting on a sofa when Ami came in
carrying a plate of fruits and wearing only her swimsuit. She boldly sat beside Ryuuji's lap,
"Hee hee hee~ Does it matter? We'll definitely have lots of fun! Come, have some fruit~!"
"Say, ah~! These pears are harvested from our own gardens~ They're~ ripe~ already~!
Try one and see!"
This is bad! Stay away from me! ... Although he thought that way, he did not feel
comfortable pushing the swimsuit-clad Ami off like that. So Ryuuji had no choice but to
obediently open his mouth. At that moment, someone else came in...
"Takasu-kun! You've gotta play with me! It's boring when Taiga isn't here! C'mon, let's play
softball! What position do you prefer? First base? Second? Or... third...?"
Minori, also wearing a swimsuit, stood by the door. She wore a baseball glove on one hand
while waving at Ryuuji with her other hand. This is pure bliss! Driven by his basic instincts
and desire, Ryuuji prepared to wobble towards Minori when...
"Hey, Takasu-kun! You've got to stay and eat some pears with Ami-chan!"
"No way! Takasu-kun needs to run back to second base with Minorin!"
"You need to enjoy some tropical fruits together with Ami-chan!"
"You've gotta fly like a bullet with Minorin!"
Ahh! I can't, I can't! Someone is waiting for me... in that dim and damp double-room plus
kitchen apartment... Besides, who's gonna cook the meals!? No good, I haven't even turned
on the rice cooker, she must be starving to death already! Ryuuji wriggled out of Ami and

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Minori's arms and rushed back to his second floor apartment, and opened the door. But it
was already too late!
Lying on the floor of his apartment were three mummified bodies: Inko-chan, Taiga, and
Yasuko. Yasuko had even written a final message on the tatami with her fingers: "Mom's
starving" What the hell!?
"Hey... you look gross..."
"What...?"
"Your face! From just now you were suddenly laughing and crying at the same time! That's
just disgusting!"
Standing before the entrance to the heated pool, now a pile of debris, Ryuuji was brought
back to reality. That's right, that cannot be allowed to happen... No matter what happens,
we've got to win this duel!
But the problem was...
"Oh man, what are we gonna do!? Does that mean we have to go back to the school
swimming pool to practice!?"
"We've got no other choice, haven't we? We're gonna have to adjust our attitude and ignore
other people's gazes..."
"How am I gonna do that!? Kitamura-kun will be watching..."
Ryuuji could find no answer for Taiga's simple question.
For the next two weeks, the rain never stopped falling.
During this time, swimming lessons were cancelled. Unable to practice, Taiga remained a
land-lubber, though she no longer had to worry about having to practice in the school
swimming pool.
"Stop raining already~!"
"At this rate, Team Takasu won't be able to practice, would they?"
Although it was daytime, the sky was unusually dark. The lighting in the classroom glowed
pale white. The students were supposed to be having a swimming lesson now, but were now
confined in the classroom, spending their free session in boredom.
Murmurs filled the classroom as everyone gossiped about how the duel between Taiga and
Ami might not even take place.
"I feel so depressed..."
"Don't worry too much about it."
Taiga lifted her head from reading a sports magazine swimming special that was used to
aide her in her mental training. Ryuuji sat beside her like a coach,
"Right now, we can only rely on mental strength!"
He took out the previous magazine issue and showed it to a depressed Taiga.
"We're just reading magazines here. I still can't swim!"
"Better than having nothing to do. Besides, haven't you been practicing kicking your legs at
my place?"
What Ryuuji meant by practicing kicking involved placing a cushion on the tatami, and then
having Taiga lie horizontally on top of it so her legs could kick freely in the air. "Good, very
good! Kick harder! Faster! Wow! There's a new burger store in Asakusa! Mmm, that looks

Toradora!:Volume3 75

delicious..." "Why on earth are you watching TV!?" "Ow ow ow ow ow ow!" The pain from
the kick that Ryuuji received on his back was evidence that she now knew how to kick her
legs.
"That kind of practice isn't enough!"
"Didn't you practice in the bathtub as well?"
"Well... yeah... Those training should have some results..."
Taiga beamed confidently from ear to ear. What Ryuuji meant by practicing in the bathtub
involved Taiga dipping her head into a tub filled with water, and holding her breath for as
long as she could with her eyes open.
"I can now open my eyes freely inside the water."
"Amazing!"
"Heh heh heh. I can even hold my breath for up to three seconds now!"
"Hey, we can win this!"
Gimme five! The crowd (consisting of two people) attempted to spice up the atmosphere,
and prepared to make a high five, but tripped as they missed each others palms.
"Man... This is boring... I really want to practice in a pool. Why did that heated pool close
down!?"
"Yeah..."
The two came to their senses and sighed depressingly while looking at the ceiling. Someone
whispered from afar, "Oh dear, wouldn't they be finished at this rate?" Hearing this, Taiga
only twisted her lips and remained silent. She couldn't even be bothered to roar.
"Ha!"
"Whoa!? What the...? Oh, it's you."
Seeing some paper planes fly before their eyes, Ryuuji quickly turned around, and saw
Kitamura standing aside and smiling. Crash! A loud sound thundered beside him, and he
realized that Taiga had fallen on the floor with her chair.
"What do you mean 'what the'? Well? How's the practicing? The duel with Ami is almost
up."
"How's the practicing? ... We can't even practice in such weather, right, Taiga?"
Taiga blushed slightly and nodded lightly as she returned to her seat. As she attempted to
adjust the position of her desk... "Whoa!" She ended being buried by the avalanche of
sports magazines.
"I guess you're right. There's no way you can practice in this weather. I don't know if this
would help, but think of it as a goodwill of mine."
"This... you mean those?"
Ryuuji looked at the papers that just flew past him, and discovered those were tickets to the
public swimming pool.
"My mom's an insurance agent, and those were supposed to be discount vouchers for her
clients, but she got two extras, so you guys can have it! Actually, I've placed my bet on
Aisaka winning this."
"Eh..."
Taiga widened her eyes and yelped, while looking surprisingly at Kitamura.

Toradora!:Volume3 76

"When I saw that note that was being passed around and found Takasu very confidently
wagered on Taiga winning, so I thought, Alright then, maybe I'll follow suit. Afterward,
many people changed their minds and wagered on Aisaka. Takasu, you've got a huge
responsibility on your shoulders now!"

Kitamura pushed his glasses and smiled genuinely. Taiga looked frenetic, and cleared her
throat many times before saying,

"W, w, wagered on... me? Does everyone think I can win?"

"Yeah."

Pop! As if having an allergic reaction, her face went even redder.

"How should I put this? Aisaka's the type that shows her potential when push comes to
shove, so she'll definitely make a great turn-around. To use a superhero description, she'd
be Kinnikuman [7], and I don't mean Kinnikuman II [8]."

Is that supposed to be a compliment? Ryuuji scratched his head in confusion, but...

"Ah... you mean the prince... the main character...?"

Taiga lowered her very red face and smiled. She looks really happy...

"Yup. And unexpectedly, Ami's the type that screws up when it comes to the big occasion,
so I think the result is far from decided."

"Can't you use them... this way instead?"

Ryuuji handed one ticket to Taiga, and handed the other to Kitamura. Before Kitamura
could react, Taiga had already widened her eyes,

"NOOO!!!"

Yelling in a strange voice, she intercepted Ryuuji's hand and snatched the ticket he was
about to hand to Kitamura, clutching it tightly to her chest. Seeming as though she was
about to erupt, Taiga's face was completely red as she glared fiercely at Ryuuji. Seeing
Taiga looking so embarrassed, Kitamura said,

"Well then, good luck! And hope it doesn't rain by then!"

There was no trace of unhappiness in Kitamura's smile, who raised one arm and waved
farewell.

"Ahh... you idiot..."

Ryuuji couldn't resist but gave Taiga's puffed up cheeks a soft playful punch. Taiga did not
resist or complain, and allowed Ryuuji's fist to stop on her face. She didn't even look at
Ryuuji as she remained silent.

Ryuuji sighed and took away the swimming pool ticket she had been clutching tightly in her
hands,

"You'll definitely lose it if it's left with you. The date on the ticket is for this weekend. It'll be
great if the weather's fine... Man, I'm thirsty. I'm gonna go get something to drink, you
want anything?"

Taiga simply shook her head.

"Wah!"

"Whoa..."

I've been through this before...

Toradora!:Volume3 77

Two people, in breach of school rules, bumped into each other in front of the vending
machines outside its permitted time of usage.
"Takasu-kun's skipping class~"
"You're in no position to talk."
Ami squatted alone by the wall and drank her milk tea. "Come sit over here!" After Ryuuji
had bought his iced coffee, she urged him to sit by her side.
"So you're all alone in this place? What an autistic girl you are."
"You too are in no position to talk~"
The two squatted shoulder by shoulder under the shadow of the wall. "Ah-choo!" Ryuuji
couldn't help but sneeze as he squatted down, causing Ami to giggle,
"Really. Are you tired?"
"Couldn't you tell? And just whose fault was it anyway?"
"Hmm? I wonder if you're referring to Ami-chan?"
"Of course. Seriously... Whenever you're up to some tricks, I'm the one that has to suffer."
"What tricks~? Ami-chan doesn't get it~"
"Why you... you can feign ignorance all you like! Keep on wearing that mask until your
facial muscles go into spasms."
"Fu fu..." Ami's smiling face was in stand-by mode. She took off her innocent mask, and a
pair of mischievous eyes appeared on her perfect looking face.
"You must be tired wearing that as well, huh?"
Spending time hiding in such a place during a rare free session... I think I can understand
that. Ryuuji couldn't resist lifting his can and tapped Ami's can. "Cheers." Ami's amber eyes
blinked a few times in surprise,
"Eh?"
The next second, she squinted them, as though she had seen something interesting,
"How rare for Takasu-kun to be paying attention to Ami-chan. What is it, huh? Could it be
that you got bullied by the Palmtop Tiger?"
"You talk too much... That happens often... Do you have any idea how many times I've been
stung by Taiga's abuses ever since the day you tried to embrace me?"
Ami chuckled like pigeon and said,
"Isn't that cute? A jealous tiger!"
"Cute my ass! Besides, she isn't jealous, she's just being pissed off by your provocations. If
you were to do that to Kushieda, she'd be fuming as well."
"No, she won't. Are you an idiot? Do you really think if I tried to embrace Minori-chan like I
did to you in front of that fellow, she'd treat Minori-chan with stinging insults as she does
with you?"
"Don't call me an idiot... That's because you and Kushieda are girls! As well as friends..."
"Sigh... Alright, alright! You're the one who's right! 'I'm not jealous at all!' ... Haha, you're
really like her. 'Aren't you jealous?' 'No, I'm not!' ... Both of you said the same things.
Takasu-kun sure is funny!"
Ami softly tossed the can she had emptied, and it landed beautifully inside the dust bin. Not
a single drop spilled out of the can, nor did it hit anything or bounce off the edge of the bin.

Toradora!:Volume3 78

Ryuuji had no chance of showing off his specially prepared wet towel used for cleaning up
the mess of clumsy people.
"This is not funny. Seriously, stop provoking Taiga with that attitude anymore. I'm the one
that ends up getting the stick here! As for that mansion... I don't think you wanted to invite
me at all. If you really win, have you ever thought of what to do next? I'm sure you'll just act
as though nothing ever happened afterward! Since all you wanted was just to drive Taiga
insane, that's why you used me..."
Ryuuji stood up, prepared to toss his can.
"What if I say I'm not going to pretend nothing's ever happened?"
The unexpected answer caused Ryuuji to turn to look at Ami.
Ami remained squatted by the wall and smiled at him with her angel mask,
"Sorry, but I'm seriously thinking of winning this. And I'm genuinely hoping to be able to
spend the summer vacation with Takasu-kun once I win. Of course, I also hope to see
Aisaka Taiga make a fool of herself, but I'm more concerned about what to do after I win...
What's with that expression? You surprised?"
Ryuuji couldn't say anything... He could no longer tell whether or not Ami was joking as
usual. Seeing his reaction, Ami remained smiling, and stretched out her tender finger,
pointing to herself and Ryuuji,
"I think it's interesting. Don't you think... that we're a match for each other?"
"A, as if!"
"Haha, look who's mad."
"Why you! There's a limit to messing around with people. And if you're done with your
drink, go back to class!"
"I'm gonna stay here for a while longer... Shouldn't Takasu-kun be going back instead?"
"I don't need you to tell me that!"
She doesn't intend to go back yet? Ami waved farewell to Ryuuji as he walked off. Even
though she had finished her drink, she remained squatting in the gap between the vending
machines...
Who knows, maybe she's actually a rather gloomy person.
"I suddenly realized, tomorrow's the fated day already."
"..."
"The weather looks strange... Though it's not raining..."
"..."
"The weather forecast said tomorrow's a cloudy day, but..."
"Buwah! Ryuuji did you see that!? Did you!?"
Nope, I was looking at the weather. Deciding not to tell her that, Ryuuji simply gave Taiga a
nod.
"Heh, heh, it's amazing, right? I must've held my breath for about ten seconds there!"
Taiga proudly puffed her phony breasts. For some time, she had been holding tight onto
Ryuuji while practicing holding her breaths by the poolside.
"Yeah, ten seconds already!"
Ryuuji, on the other hand, sat by the side of the children's pool.

Toradora!:Volume3 79

"Hey! There's a delinquent there!"
"No, Aa-chan! You mustn't go near those people!"
The housewife who brought her child trembled as she said that. This pool was supposed to
be reserved for small kids and babies, so the water only reached Ryuuji's kneecaps.
"Hey, Ryuuji, do I look like I'm swimming?"
Taiga let go of her hands from the pool side and began crawling on the bottom of the pool
like an alligator...
"Wah!?"
Her hands probably slipped as she submerged into the water, creating many bubbles. After
splashing for a while, she finally stood up. As she choked on the water and yelled non-stop...
"Oh no! Aa-chan! You can't do that!"
Aa-chan had taken out an elephant-shaped sprinkler and sprayed water on top of Taiga's
head.
"I'm so sorry about this! You mustn't do that, Aa-chan!"
"Wah..."
Aa-chan finally got carried away by his mother. Taiga remained silent and walked towards
Ryuuji with an ambiguous expression,
"Even I wouldn't use violence against the innocent antics of little kids..."
A concession of defeat by the Palmtop Tiger... Now that's rare.
"As high-school students are not supposed to be in a children's pool, we are in no position
to complain."
"Was that the reason why that kid was so pissed...?"
In this rainless Sunday, the public swimming pool tickets Kitamura gave them were finally
put to good use.
Ryuuji and Taiga arrived here in high-spirits after a 20 minute bus ride. Yet the sun did not
appear, and the sky remained gloomy while the temperature hardly gone up at all, meaning
the swimming pool water was icy cold. Maybe as a result of these factors, there weren't
many people today. The four main pools were as quiet as they could get.
"Taiga, let's go to the big pool over there! It'd be great if only they had slides..."
"There's the 'wave pool' as well, since the water flows like a river... Hey, are those people
crazy?"
Taiga left a tiny footprint on the ground while laughing at the junior high students
"meditating" under the "waterfall pool". Just when Ryuuji was about to tell her that
Kitamura had done exactly the same thing, he discovered something nearby that could be
put to good use.
"Here!"
"Whoa!? Hey! What the?"
Ryuuji had lopped a floating ring over Taiga's head. He found it lying on the ground, no
doubt dumped by someone after they were done using it.
"We can't help it, can we? If you don't want to drown, you'll need to grab onto this. You
can't touch the bottom, right? Come on, we'll go to the 'wave pool'!"
"This... is too embarrassing..."

Toradora!:Volume3 80

Sploosh! Ryuuji stepped into the round-shaped pool with one foot and jumped in. Trying not
to trip over floating ring, Taiga carefully entered the pool right behind Ryuuji.

"Wah! M... my feet can't reach the bottom!"

Grabbing onto the floating ring that Taiga was wearing and drifting along in the flowing
water, Ryuuji said,

"Anyway, it's already too late for us to start practicing on freestyle. We'll just have to rely
on floating rings or boards tomorrow..."

"No way! Oh man... that's just too embarrassing! ... Why'd it come to this!?"

"Well, we don't have a choice, do we? If you say you're quitting because you can't swim,
you'll just fall straight into Kawashima's plans! Besides, no one ever said you have to swim
freestyle anyway. The competition method merely said "Any style of swimming", so I guess
floating boards are allowed."

"Any style... Ryuuji, does that mean we are free to choose any method we want?"

"Hey, quit it with that sinister looking smile! First try kicking your legs. Since there's a
current in this pool, you should be able to move forward comfortably."

"Mmm..."

Ryuuji gently pushed the floating ring. He swam forwards in breaststroke with his head
above the water, moving along with Taiga.

"Like this?"

Splash splash splash splash! Huge splashes were created. Now able to float, Taiga's leg
kicking became formidable. Although this pool has currents, isn't she moving a bit too fast?
As Taiga continued to accelerate at breakneck speed, Ryuuji could no longer catch up using
his breaststroke, and had to start paddling his arms forward.

"Hey! Wait up!"

The splashes finally stopped. Gently using the momentum generated by the floating ring,
Taiga floated while changing directions, and even looked at Ryuuji, who was catching up, in
disbelief,

"What now? Do I really swim that fast? Or is this normal for this 'wave pool'?"

"N, no, you really do swim fast, since I'm also in this 'wave pool'... Hey! Wait... I'm... out of
breath..."

"Really? Then I'm going to start swimming seriously, and you're gonna have to seriously try
catching up with me!"

Splash splash splash splash! The powerful water kicking began once again, and Taiga's
body quickly moved forward. No one can swim that fast in a floating ring!

"Are you kidding me!?"

She was so fast that Ryuuji couldn't even catch up with just paddling his arms, and had to
start swimming freestyle. All this time, he had been training her in something he was good
at in order to get her to think highly of him, so there was no reason why he shouldn't have
been able to catch up with someone in a floating ring.

"H, how is this possible..."

Taiga, giving it her all, swam forward along with the current. Gradually, the splashes she
created grew smaller and smaller. Ryuuji was also swimming at full speed, but just couldn't
catch up with Taiga.

Toradora!:Volume3 81

At this point, Taiga had stopped swimming, and simply looked back at Ryuuji,

"You really are a useless dog! Does that mean I'm amazing? I may be able to win that..."

"Don't... get... complacent...! There's... a current... in here... after all...!"

Lifting his head above the water, Ryuuji was already trying to catch his breath by the time
he had caught up with Taiga and grabbed her floating ring.

"That's gross! Why're you panting like a pervert?"

"... I'm... out of breath... huff... Can't help it... puff... Oh boy..."

Ryuuji now let himself drift along the current, while trying to get his breathing back to
normal,

"Phew~ It's been ages since I swam with all my energy..."

Yeah, yeah, yeah, As Taiga was about to open her mouth to say that, she found herself
yawning, the tears coming out of her eyes trickled down with the water on her face. Ryuuji
found himself feeling relaxed, and looked dumbstruck at Taiga's tears.

After kicking the water and drifting for a while, perhaps it was the sound of the water or
the effects caused by floating on the water, their minds became gradually soothed. They
remained silent for some time, and allowed themselves to drift along the water.

"I feel like... I can just sleep like this..."

Taiga yawned a second time. Ryuuji too made a big yawn. Looking aside, they saw a frail
old man lying on a floating bed and drifting forward. Beside him was a kid who seemed to
be his grandson, who wore a duck-shaped floating ring, swimming beside his grandfather.

In other words, no one in this pool was moving forward on their own. Everyone allowed the
current to take them along, at a relaxed pace...

"Ah~ Looks like we've come to the quietest pool..."

"I really feel like sleeping now..."

"Me too..."

That was to be expected. He had woken up at seven just to look out at the weather. As they
made preparations while watching the weather forecast, by the time he decided to leave his
apartment, it was already eight.

Afterward, Ryuuji had to prepare Inko-chan's meals, and had to look at his hideous sleeping
face. He also had to take care of Yasuko, who came home drunk, and sat and wept while
half-sleeping, though she didn't wake up in the end. He also had to go back home because
Taiga had left her hair clip in her apartment... By the time they got on the bus, it was
already nine. And by the time Taiga had changed into her swimsuits, it was already ten
before they finally entered the pool.

Ryuuji had a feeling that even before arriving at the pool, they had wasted quite a lot of
energy already.

"How's the weather tomorrow?"

"It looks like it'll rain, and the pool will be closed."

Both of them opened their mouths dreamily, and held onto the floating ring while lifting
their heads and looking at the slightly gloomy sky. Like a sleepy kitten, Taiga found even
lifting her head to be bothersome, and lazily rested her face on the floating ring,

"I feel like... this is better... I think... it's fine like this..."

Taiga obviously looked exhausted. Ryuuji understood that feeling very well too...

Toradora!:Volume3 82

"Don't say that. Kitamura's placed his bet on you, after all! You must've been happy when
you heard that, right?"
In an attempt to get Taiga motivated, Ryuuji had used his only "spark", hoping to ignite her
eyes with flames of passion...
"Umm..."
"What's with the 'umm'!?"
Taiga laid her face on the floating ring. Her eyes lacked focus as they stared ahead at the
water. A drop of water fell from an eyelash, glittered then and dropped onto her tender
wrist. As Ryuuji watched that drop, he twisted his lips as he said,
"We gone through a lot of trouble to come here. Even Kitamura's cheering for us. Isn't that
attitude a bit wrong?"
Taiga did not respond, but instead, closed her thin eyelids, her long hair floating on the
surface of the water. Is she no longer concerned with winning anymore!?
Without realizing it, Ryuuji felt angry. He remembered what Ami had said to him before,
"Sorry, but I'm seriously thinking of winning this. And I'm genuinely hoping to be able to
spend the summer vacation with Takasu-kun once I win."
Drifting together with Taiga, for the first time, the thought of her possibly losing appeared
in Ryuuji's head. In terms of determination, she had already lost! Besides the natural
disadvantage of being a land-lubber, not wanting Kitamura to see her work so hard for
Ryuuji's sake was another reason for her indifference. Perhaps Taiga does want to win, but
unexpectedly, she had fallen into a trap of weariness.
If this goes on, Taiga might really lose. If she loses, then I...
"It's raining?"
"No way..."
Taiga raised her head as an icy cold raindrop fell on her nose.
As it was lunchtime, they decided to have some soba in the snack shop beside the pool
while waiting for the rain to stop.
"Looks like everyone's gone home instead of waiting for the rain to end." said Taiga, who
had stopped eating while sitting under the umbrella, still wearing her swimsuit.
"That's their problem. Once the rain's over, let's go to the pool without any currents."
"Hmm. Your lips are all green."
"Well, your lips are stained with seaweed as well."
Not concerned with the seaweed on her mouth, Taiga furrowed her brow and stretched her
arms. Looking at the rain outside of the umbrella, she frowned even more...
"It's raining cats and dogs!"
"Looks like it won't be ending soon..."
"It's getting colder as well..."
Taiga showed her arm to Ryuuji, "Look, I have goosebumps already." Her white skin
revealed many tiny spots, evidence of how ruthless the elements have been to her wet skin.
"It'll be over if you catch a cold. Let's go back once you're finished eating, okay?"
Ryuuji's suggestion was made out of concern for Taiga's weary expression.
"Going home already?"

Toradora!:Volume3 83

Taiga gave an enigmatic expression, looking innocent like a child, mixed with a sense of
dissatisfaction. She looked at Ryuuji and said,

"You're getting goosebumps too, aren't you? Besides, my lips are getting pale. We can't go
on like this."

"You may be right... but we still haven't practiced enough! We only drifted for a while just
now..."

Taiga opened her mouth and slurped in the soba, stuffing her cheeks full. Ryuuji looked at
her stubborn face and thought, From her hesitation, it seems like she's more inclined
towards not going home.

"Not going home? But it's getting colder now. Are you sure you still want to continue?
Though I myself hope you can continue..."

"Yup, we'll continue. Though it's cold... I'm feeling hesitant... about many things... but I still
want to try my best."

She really is hard to read. Ryuuji tilted his head and then realized, That's it! The spark of
love from a while ago probably caught and started its magic within her...

"You're right. Since Kitamura gave us these tickets, they contain his support for us. It would
be a pity to just waste them like that."

Taiga's eyes looked upwards,

"That's not the reason! No, it's not. I'm working hard because... The reason I decided to
continue is because... Forget it! Since it's useless trying to tell anything to a stupid dog like
you!"

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing!"

Taiga violently closed the box of soba she had just finished, and tossed the plastic
chopsticks aside. Ryuuji had no idea what she was so pissed off about. All he knew was that
her mood had suddenly taken a turn for the worse. Yet, Ryuuji felt troubled by the mood
swing that had come from nowhere. In face, Ryuuji had found himself getting frustrated.

"I... I'm feeling unsure about this, do you understand? If I work hard for this sort of thing,
Kitamura-kun's probably going to misunderstand our relationship again! But, but... I want
to work hard, I want to! Because... because you..."

Ryuuji and Taiga made eye contact. Under the umbrella in the gloomy sky, Taiga's eyes
glared strongly.

Normally, Ryuuji would accept this glare straight on. No matter what Taiga wanted to say,
no matter what she was thinking, he was always thinking of how to get her to feel better
again. The degree which Ryuuji spoiled and pampered Taiga was becoming almost pathetic.
This was because Ryuuji was already a hopelessly kind person to begin with. Sometimes he
would treat Taiga, whom he shared a dining table with, as a sister or a comrade in battle,
and he knew very well about Taiga's extreme clumsiness and inability to express herself
properly.

Yet right now, he could not face that glare...

"It's got nothing to do with you!"

After saying this, Taiga, as she usually would, turned her face and glanced coldly at Ryuuji
out of the side of her eye. Ryuuji was further infuriated for some reason.

Toradora!:Volume3 84

Was it because it was getting cold? Or maybe he was tired? Could it have been because the
soba tasted terrible? Or did those shameful comments on the betting note damaged his
pride?

Or could the reason be something simpler? He would always treat Taiga nicely, yet every
single time Taiga would say, "Ryuuji has nothing to do with me!"

"Ah... I get it now! Then forget it! Let's stop training... since you never gave a damn
anyway!"

Perhaps it was because all these emotions had been buried within his heart for so long.

Hearing Ryuuji's stiff voice, the intensity in Taiga's eyes changed,

"What is that supposed to mean? Who says I don't give a damn? Didn't I say I want to
practice? Didn't I say I don't want to go home and want to continue?"

"Don't force yourself already, since I don't have anything to do with you, right? Why not just
cancel tomorrow's duel if that's the case? What's the point in working hard? Besides, you
can prove to Kitamura you don't give a damn about me! I'll go tell Ami and ask her not to
bring him along. Kushieda won't be coming as well, I'm sure you'll be happy about that?
You don't need to worry about anything anymore, isn't that great? You can always go buy
boxed lunch sets in the convenience store, or order take out from the Chinese restaurant
outside the station during the summer!"

Taiga glared coldly at Ryuuji, her eyes filled with anger,

"... Say that again?"

"I meant exactly what I said! You don't need to practice, and you don't need to accept the
duel! You happy now!? Kitamura won't be going to the mansion, and long as your meals are
sorted out, what else is there to worry about!? You have no right, as well as no reason to
interfere with whomever I want to go anywhere with!"

"... Yes, yes, you're right!"

A cold laugh emanated from behind Taiga's bloodless lips,

"So you've shown your true colours, haven't you!? If I had noticed it sooner, I wouldn't have
to suffer so much like an idiot!"

"What's that supposed to mean!? Showing my colours?"

"You actually wanted to go, don't you? To Kawashima Ami's mansion? Don't make me laugh!
You actually want to spend the summer with cute girls, don't you? Well, that's
understandable, since your vacation would be ruined if you were to spend it with me! If you
so wanted to go, couldn't you have said so in the first place!? Or could it be... I see! You've
been using me, haven't you!? You feel bad having to say it yourself, so you decide to use me
as an excuse, and put on an appearance of 'Oh, I actually don't want to go, but I had no
choice!'... Are you an idiot?"

"You..."

How the hell did it come to this!? Ryuuji's mind was blinded with rage. Why did I check out
the weather forecast with you every day? Why did I spend time training you to kick your
legs? Why did I come here with you... And this little girl actually has the balls to say such
stuff!? Have you gone blind!?

"I REALLY don't understand what the hell you're thinking!"

"That ought to be my line!"

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Taiga roared back, but Ryuuji did not understand what she meant. This only made him
angrier, and he continued in rage,

"You've always been like this! Always! Saying you don't give a damn about me, but deep
inside, you've already jumped to conclusions and assumed I'm the one who's in the wrong!
Why must you always be like that!? So what if I embraced Kawashima!? Why must I put up
with your abuses!?"

"Why must you mention that again!?"

Taiga went ballistic as she turned the table over and stood up. She picked up the umbrella
and threw it at Ryuuji. The rain continued to fall. There was no one else around. Only the
wind broke the silence by the poolside.

"WHY!? Tell me why? Why is it that you just don't get it? I was never mad! Haven't I been
saying that since the beginning!? I was only feeling pissed off..."

Thud! Taiga placed her fist on her chest. Her voice was getting hoarse.

"... By people who think they know everything about what I'm thinking! That's all! What the
hell is this about me being pissed about Ryuuji!? What the hell is this me wanting to say
Ryuuji belongs to me!? To hell with that! What do you understand anyway? Just who can
understand how I see Ryuuji anyway? How could anyone possibly ever understand!? I never
even told anyone about this! I don't even understand it myself!"

Ryuuji only heard half of Taiga's rants. He had fallen into the children's pool while dodging
the umbrella Taiga had thrown at him.

"Cough, cough... What... did you just say!?"

"I said I'm quitting! You can go wherever you like for all I care!"

Ryuuji watched from behind as Taiga ran back to the changing room, rubbing her eyes.

"Suit yourself! Moron!" Although he had said that, deep down, Ryuuji still hoped, Taiga's
going to trip clumsily, and then lose something important, and then come over to ask for my
help. I can sigh and say, "You idiot!" And everything will return to normal...

Taiga never turned back. She took a taxi home by herself.

She didn't even come over for dinner, nor did Ryuuji ask her to come over.

They seemed to have fallen out badly.

At eleven at night in the quiet Takasu residence, Ryuuji faced the bird cage and said,

"I don't think I did anything wrong, did I?"

Like any other parrot, Inko-chan only chirped, and avoided contact with Ryuuji's eyes...

Chapter 5

Ugh!

When Ryuuji awoke from a bizarre dream, it was only five in the morning, and the sun had
just risen.

After sleeping a night, he could still feel the anger burning within him, but it was no longer
as intense as it was the day before. The flames were no longer searing hot, and only glowed
as embers within his heart.

Maybe I was so angry that I actually woke myself up? Thinking about it he got even more
peeved.

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Scratching his head, he got out of his bed. After using the bathroom, he stood on the icy
kitchen floor as he washed his hand in the kitchen sink... Lemme check out the kitchen
cabinet.

He took out the high-class ham steak that Yasuko brought home the other day - he heard it
was a gift from some customer. They had wanted to save it for a special occasion, which is
why it was kept until now.

Might as well make a boxed lunch. I'm already awake anyway. Besides, if I don't keep
myself busy with something, I won't be able to calm down... Taiga and Ami's duel no longer
matters anymore, as does the weather, the pool and the summer vacation... So, let's make
lunch. Luckily, there's still some minced meat left. Otherwise I can always use the chicken
legs. As for vegetables, there are onions, tomatoes, green peppers, mushrooms...

Ryuuji mixed the ingredients with his hands as he prepared to make the ham steak
norimaki [9]. After frying with oil and sprinkling on some salt and pepper, he added the
sweet fried eggs as stuffing, along with rice and wrapped it up.

I'll have this for lunch! Ryuuji was no longer concerned about anything. Just as he was
about to open the refrigerator to get more ingredients, he heard the apartment door click
open.

"Oh my~?"

Yasuko stuck her head in and exclaimed in surprise, smiling at her son,

"Why is Ryuu-chan up so early~?"

Smelling of booze, she bounced around happily.

"I couldn't sleep, so I decided to cook something for lunch."

Ryuuji poured some barley tea into a glass and handed it to Yasuko, who finished it in one
gulp.

"Ah! That tastes good~! Oh yes, have you and Taiga-chan made up with each other yet?"

"Not yet."

Ryuuji honestly shook his head while chopping some onions... There was no need to put up
a front for someone who was drunk.

"Really? ... Come to think of it, this is the first time Ryuu-chan has ever quarreled with
anyone..."

"Yeah..."

It was as his mother had said.

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It was quite embarrassing as well, because up till now,
Ryuuji had never seriously yelled at or argued with
anyone before. Usually he would only get involved in
minor disputes, or simply smile back begrudgingly at
something he did not agree with. That was all. But this
was really the first time he allowed his negative
emotions to take over. Asking himself how he felt, he
would say This feels terrible!

Sigh... Yasuko sighed as well.

"Why did you two start fighting anyway? And you guys
even managed to get a chance to go swimming
together..."

Yasuko sat on the kitchen floor, but this time, Ryuuji did
not complain.

"I guess... It's because Taiga said that she didn't give a
damn about me... That's why I got mad..."

"So that's why... But Ryuu-chan should understand, right? Taiga-chan's always like that...
Not saying what she really means..."

The sharp knife had turned the piece of onion lying on the chopping board into many tiny
pieces, irritating Ryuuji's eyes and nose. This is a really good piece of onion!

"Taiga-chan's... already... hinted very clearly to you... Taiga-chan... likes Ryuu-chan a lot...
She definitely doesn't... want you to go out... with other people..."

I'll chop another one!

"Though Ya-chan isn't sure if Taiga-chan wants to go out with you. But... Ryuu-chan~ She
doesn't really hate you... She's the sort of person that wouldn't share a dining table with
people that she hates, even if she was starving... That's what Ya-chan thinks..."

Yasuko's icy hands gently touched Ryuuji's legs.

As though trying to transfer her power into him, she patted them, as though comforting a
small child.

And then...

"Zzzzz..."

Her hands slid down onto floor. She smelled of alcohol... As usual, Yasuko had fallen asleep
from drinking too much.

"... Jeez... She hasn't even taken off her makeup yet..."

Ryuuji washed the onion pieces off of his hands, carried his drunk mother back to her
bedroom, and laid her down on her futon, which he hadn't had the chance to tidy up yet. A
nostalgic memory then hit him.

Yasuko smells just like usual... That fragrant and sweet smell surprisingly suits her well.

He still remembered when they lived in a place messier than this town. Whenever Yasuko
came to pick him up, she would bring light to the gloomy child-care centre. Ryuuji would
happily dash towards her, no matter how tired he might of been. "Ryuu-chan! I'm so sorry!"
Being hugged by Yasuko, he would smell that same sweet fragrance. Although it was a cold
winter's day, that neck he held onto would be full of sweet-scented sweat. Even though she

Toradora!:Volume3 88

wore high-heels and a mini-skirt, she still ran all the way down to pick him up.
Although I occasionally forget, she really is my mother. Acknowledging this fact, Ryuuji
thought that even when he reached her age and began living alone, her words would still
rouse his spirits.
Right next to his boxed lunch, he prepared another for Taiga. I'm still annoyed by her and
we are still fighting, but after hearing Yasuko say that, I'll guess make one for her too! After
all, it's not often one can have such top-quality ham for lunch. He had already gone through
the trouble of preparing such a grand meal anyway.
... You say I have a mother complex?
Well, what's wrong with having a mother complex?
The cloudy sky was slowly drizzling.
"Taiga! Hey, wait up!"
Ryuuji dodged the puddles and caught up with the lavender-coloured umbrella. Under the
birch tree path, Ryuuji stood before her and said,
"I won't ask you to walk with me! ... I just want to give you the boxed lunch I made for you!
You haven't eaten anything since yesterday, right? Breakfast is in a separate box, so you
can have that when you get to school."
"..."
Although Taiga's eyes emitted an unspeakably strong glare, she said nothing. He couldn't
tell whether she was angry as she was looking at his feet, but her cold expression made it
seem as if she was staring at a rock that had gotten in her way.
Only the bag containing the boxed food which Ryuuji held out occupied the space between
them.
He took another step forward, approaching Taiga closer, and stuffed the bag into her arms.
Drops of rain fell onto the back of his hands.
"It's raining..."
"..."
"I hope the weather will improve..."
Taiga momentarily looked at Ryuuji, who was trying to think of something to say. He wasn't
sure if he had anything to say to her, as they were still bickering. But since he had gone
through the trouble to prepare food for her, he had to find some excuse to explain the
contradiction of his actions, while at the same time not wanting her forgiveness...
"If it does... then you'll swim for me in the duel right?"
Huh...?
After he said that, he tilted his head in bewilderment. Do I really want Taiga to take part?
This... Feels like... Since I've already said it...
But, why?
Is it because I don't want to go with Kawashima to her mansion?
But wouldn't it have been easier if I had just refused Kawashima in the first place? Then the
problem would be solved at once. She couldn't have forced me to go anyway.
Though having said that. I couldn't say it, and I didn't refuse her.

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Why not? Why did I not refuse her, but instead want Taiga to beat her in a duel? Why was it
anyway? Was it because everyone had dragged me in without my consent? Was it because
no one gave me a chance to refuse? Was that why I used that as an excuse and said it was
because everyone had disregarded how I felt and forced me into this situation?... The
question is... what are my thoughts on this exactly?
Questioning himself, Ryuuji swallowed the rest of what he was about to say.
"Ah..."
The food bag on Ryuuji's hand was snatched away.
Taiga's eyes remained cold, but she opened her mouth and said,
"The boxed food has nothing to do with this, so I'll accept it. But I will never forgive you!
Never!"
Closing her lavender-coloured umbrella, Taiga shot a glare at Ryuuji, causing him to wince.
"The swimming duel has nothing to do with me!"
Even if it doesn't have anything to do with you, it's not possible to have a duel in such
weather anyway... By the time he was able to open his eyes, he was shocked by the sight
before him, causing him to drop his umbrella on the ground.
A silver glimmer had appeared between the cracks in the clouds.
The summer sunlight shone through the clouds and straight onto his skin. The blue sky
opened up in both directions, causing the droplets on Taiga's brows to glitter brightly.
"Well~ Since you're always in the PE office and rarely appear in the main staff room, that's
why~ I've been thinking~ It would be fun if we can spend time chatting together! Why
don't you join us in having a drink occasionally~?"
"Oh, I'm not really that good at drinking!"
"Oh~ then what do you normally do at night~? And during holidays? Could it be you've
been spending time with your girlfriend~?"
"I take protein supplements! And I work out!"
"I see~! Hmm, very good~ I guess I should go work out as well~ Maybe I'll take some yoga
or pilates lessons!"
"The gym is great! The equipment is great!"
"Don't they have some hot yoga lessons as well~?"
"They have strength training too! To build the muscles! And reinforce the body!"
"Well... building muscles...? I don't really..."
"I'm quite satisfied with my build! Look! It's great, right? How about that? This back! This
shoulder! These legs! How about that?"
"T... They look reliable... Is that what you call muscular...?"
"Please say they're huge! Ha! Hmph!"
"T, they're huge."
"Say they're firm! See? Ha!"
"Firm..."
Koigakubo Yuri (29, single) shook her head and stood up. It's no good, I can't communicate
with him at all. I must've pushed myself on him too hard. Haruta simply pointed at her and
laughed,

Toradora!:Volume3 90

"Haha! Yuri has left the stage! The poor lady..."

He sat with Ryuuji under the long and elusive blue sky, and allowed the sun to warm their
bodies up.

"By the way, where the hell are today's main characters anyway!?"

"Seeing as the weather's become nice as well..."

The dazzling mid-summer sun shone brightly above the heads of the students of Class 2-C,
yet no one had immersed themselves in the swimming pool. Everyone stood in a single row
beside the pool, while murmuring amongst themselves. "They're taking too long!" "Hey,
how much did you bet? On who?" Even Muscle Kuro, their PE teacher, seemed to have
noticed the students were holding some sort of activity, and quietly observed from aside
while tanning.

Ryuuji twitched his mouth as he sat with Haruta, Noto and Kitamura, and wiped the sweat
on his forehead. Haruta jabbed his shoulder and asked,

"Hey, Takasu, is the Palmtop Tiger gonna come?"

"How should I know if she's coming or not..."

We had a pretty bad falling out yesterday, so she's probably not gonna come. Yet even if it
was just to Noto, he could not tell anyone about this. The illegal betting within the class
was being carried out in a frenzy, and by the time anyone had noticed, the odds between
Ami and Taiga winning were now quite even. It was rumoured someone had placed twenty
bets on Taiga in one go, his reason being, "Because Takasu is very confident!" As it was
Ryuuji's fault that Taiga might forfeit the duel, there was no way he could tell them about
that.

Hanging a whistle on her neck and sitting silently on the diving podium was Minori, who
would be the neutral referee for this duel.

A roar suddenly came from one corner of the onlooking audience. "What's happening?",
everyone wondered.

"Sorry about that! I had to tie my hair, so it took some time~!"

"WHOOOOOOOAAAAAAA!!!!!" The ground shook as everyone roared. Is the the sound of
excitement? Ryuuji stuck his head out to see what the commotion was about.

It was because Ami had appeared, jogging slowly.

With her hair tied in a beautiful braid, she arrived in her usual cute face and perfect figure,
but this time...

"B, bikini!"

"I will never forget what I have seen today for the rest of my life!"

... She was wearing an all black bikini.

A seductive looking cleavage, an area precariously supported by a small piece of triangular
fabric, a seemingly well-endowed bust, an abdomen as beautiful as a sculpture's, and a tiny
belly-button. Everything was exposed. Ami has graduated from being an angel, and has
evolved into a devil... A devil with serious looks and figure.

"It's been raining all the time lately, so my swimsuit wouldn't dry. That's why... Oh no!
What's with everyone? I'll get embarrassed if everyone looks at me like that! Is this against
the school rules? I'm a bit worried..."

Toradora!:Volume3 91

Ami's cheeks blushed bright red as she pouted in a concerned looking face. Her swimsuit
wouldn't dry? The last swimming lesson was two weeks ago... though now wasn't the time
to pay attention to such detail... Like an idiot, Ryuuji stared at Ami with his jaw agape,
when someone suddenly said to him,
"That beautiful Ami-chan, she's gonna swim, right?"
"She's doing all of this for Takasu, right?"
"Why is it only Takasu!? Why, why, why, why, why!?"
"Why, why, why, why, why is it just Takasu!?"
"Ow, my ears!"
On his right was Haruta, and on his left was Noto. Surrounded by jealous glares
everywhere, Ryuuji cringed.
"Seriously, stop it you guys! Not even I know if there'll be a duel, okay? If Taiga doesn't
come, wouldn't the duel be canceled?"
"Huh? The Palmtop Tiger's not coming? Why?"
"Don't ask me why... how should I know... She'd probably thinks it's too stupid or
something! Since she never really did give a..."
"WHOOOOOOOAAAAAAA!!!" Another roar erupted on the other end, but this time, it
sounded slightly different. "Now what?", Ryuuji thought and turned around...
"WHOA!?"
It was the roar of astonishment.
"Goodness me! I thought the Palmtop Tiger was dressed in full armour!"
"No matter how you look, she just looks like she's wearing a bullet-proof vest!"
The one that had appeared... was Taiga.
Her hair tied in two buns, she wore a bikini... yeah, right. She wore the same deep-blue
swimsuit as last time, padded with phony breasts inside. But what amazed the crowd was
the variety of floating equipment she carried on her tiny body. She wore a fully-blown
floating ring on her waist, and her armpits and elbows were stuffed with floating boards,
tiny beach balls and air bags. In any case, she had grabbed anything that would help her
float and put it on. There was so much floating equipment that one could hardly see her
skin.
"Hey, are you seriously planning to swim in that?!"
Ami yelled at Taiga, who proudly lifted her chin and said,
"Why not!? Don't tell me you're gonna ban 'foreign objects' at the last minute?"
"Isn't that obvious!? You've basically surrendered by not being able to swim!"
"Oh really? Then how about you take off that swimsuit of yours? A swimsuit is also a foreign
object, isn't it? You planning to swim naked? Wow, amazing! As expected from an expert!
But I'm afraid you'll get arrested by the police afterward."
"What absurdity is this!?"
"Oh? Could it be... You're afraid that you might lose? Well, I can understand how
embarrassing it might be if you lost to someone who couldn't swim... Yeah, I do..."
"Ugh!" Ami was so peeved she could say nothing, but she quickly reverted to her casual
smile,

Toradora!:Volume3 92

"Hmph, you can say whatever you like! Since you can't possibly swim wearing all that. At
least it'll be better than nearly drowning like last time."

"Thank you for your concern, but shouldn't you be the one who should take care?
Swimming accidents can be pretty scary, you know? No one can predict what might
happen!"

"Hmph!" Both of them turned their faces away and ended their intense pre-match trash
talking session.

Minori stood up and said,

"Now then! Let us commence the 25 metre return free-for-all style swimming contest! First,
let's have the passionate and fired-up Ami-chan say something!"

"Okay! Anyway, I'll swim as best I can! That's all!"

Everyone applauded generously, some boys shamelessly shouted from the poolside,
"Ami-chan is super cute!" "Come on, Ami-chan!" "I love you!" "I'm serious!"

Minori continued on, "Taiga, you say something as well!"

"Alright, in that case, I'll make myself absolutely clear. You! The guy with the intimidating
eyes!"

Surprised at suddenly being singled out in public, Ryuuji jumped up. The finger Taiga used
to point with had little flecks of seaweed... Looking closely, even her lips had some as well...
Looks like she did eat this morning's norimaki.

"Don't be so conceited! ... I didn't take part in this race for you, I'm only here because this
stupid chihuahua..."

"Who you calling a stupid chihuahua!?"

"...has the balls to wear such a ridiculous-looking bikini! I just want to teach her a little
lesson and make her look foolish!"

"What do you mean by a ridiculous-looking bikini!?"

"That ridiculous-looking bikini you're wearing! This is the first time I've ever seen an idiot
wear a bikini at school!"

"You got a problem with that!? It's cute this way!"

"It looks stupid!"

"You're the least qualified to say that when you're wearing all that!"

Taiga no longer looked at Ryuuji with contemptuous eyes, but Ryuuji's were now intensely
fixated on her. It wasn't because he was trying to tear Taiga's swimsuit into a bikini with his
glare, but because he was surprised once again - not because of the countless floating
equipment, but because of the fact that she actually appeared.

Ryuuji never thought that Taiga would compete. Didn't she already say it? 'I'll never forgive
you! The swimming duel has nothing to do with me!' Instead, she says she came because
she couldn't stand Ami's bikini...

Besides Ryuuji, the audience gave Taiga's speech an equally generous applause as Ami's.
"My income depends on you!" "Continue with your legacy of being the strongest!" "Fight!"
"Master!!!" Though the style of the applause was different, the intensity of it still sent the
mid-summer swimming pool trembling.

"That's enough! Silence, you foolish imbeciles!"

Toradora!:Volume3 93

Afterward, both did their warm-ups as instructed by Minori, and then made sure they had
splashed their chests with water...
"Now then... TAKE YOUR MARK!"
Like an athletic swimmer, Ami stood skillfully on the starting platform and bent forwards.
Taiga, on the other hand...
"Hey... is the Palmtop Tiger intending to dive into the water too!?"
"Wouldn't it be better if she started inside the pool instead?"
"Don't force yourself!"
... Even the audience was feeling uncomfortable... but Taiga remained standing on her
starting platform.
Ami took a glance at Taiga, and giggled as though seeing a fool.
Seeing Ami's giggle, Taiga simply ignored her and turned her head away.
"GET SET!"
With the whistle in her mouth, Minori raised one arm. Everyone went dead silent. Just when
Ami was about to propel herself off with her legs, Taiga suddenly pointed to her abdomen
and said,
"Hey, there's hair!"
"EH!?"
BEEEEEP! A loud whistle was blown, and the match had begun. But Ami had raised her
head due to being distracted by Taiga...
"Ugh!"
WHAT!?
Everyone widened their eyes in surprise, including Ryuuji and Ami.
As the whistle was being blown, Taiga threw all her floating rings towards Ami. Seeing all
the floating equipment flying towards her, Ami lost her balance on the starting platform and
missed her chance at a perfect start.
The tiger had revealed her fangs. Her glowing eyes burned bright as she raised her hand,
revealing a wooden blade. It became clear to everyone at once that all the floating
equipment she wore was merely used to conceal that blade. In her other hand was the last
floating board, which she used to charge towards Ami.
"HA!"
"Kyaa!"
Without any excessive noise, Taiga jumped high in the air to avoid getting hit back, and
then gave her opponent a well-executed spin kick. Losing her balance, Ami fell head first
into the pool, creating a huge splash. Taiga followed suit and jumped into the pool...
... And held onto Ami and struggled with her underwater... Had they begun beating on each
other already?
"What's the situation?"
"Intense! This is way too intense!"
Amongst the yells and screams, Ryuuji went numb... Aisaka Taiga, just who on earth are
you... For you to do such a thing... Is that really allowed!?

Toradora!:Volume3 94

Four pale white arms splashed on the surfaced, and then sunk into the water again as they
struggled with each other.
"BUWAH!"
Taiga was first to resurface, grabbing her floating board. She revealed a twisted smile that
even the devil himself would flee at the sight of.
Ami was next to come out, but her eyes revealed a sense of shock. This was because on the
tip of Taiga's wooden blade, which was lifted high in the air...
"Eh...?"
"I told you already. You should never have worn such a ridiculous bikini! It comes off as
easily as this... You, and that swimsuit, are both stupid beyond salvation!"
... was the upper half of Ami's bikini.
"KYAAAAAAAAAA!!!"
Ami's scream echoed across the heavens.
"WHOOOOOOOAAAAAAA!!!"
The roars of the men caused the ground to shake.
Ami covered her chest with her arms, but at the same
time, tried desperately to retrieve her bikini. She was
no longer concerned with maintaining her angel mask.
But Taiga wasn't so stupid as to let her have it back.
"If you want it, come and get it!"
She swung her wooden blade, and the wet bikini flew in
the air, landing mercilessly on the fence near their
starting point.
"No way! No way! This is not happening!!!"
No matter how much she cried, the fact now was that
with her arms covering her chest, Ami was unable to
move at all.
Seizing this opportunity, Taiga quickly grabbed her
floating board, and set off by kicking her legs at an incredible speed, far beyond the ability
of any normal person.
"Awesome! The Palmtop Tiger's definitely gonna win at this rate!"
"That's too underhanded!"
"The one who'll rescue Ami-chan will be me!"
Seeing Taiga speed off, Ami's supporters could not simply remain silent. They all began to
run towards the bikini in order to hand it over to Ami...
"Oh no you don't!"
"Though I feel bad for Ami-chan, I'm still going to have to stop you guys!"
Taiga's supporters too rushed towards the bikini from the other end. Both sides struggled
as they attempted to win control of the bikini. When someone finally got their hands on it...
"Hey, hang on. I think I smell something!"
"Even if it's just for a moment, let me smell it!"
The boys forgot their original purpose, and began to fight each other over the bikini.

Toradora!:Volume3 95

"It's time to join forces! Screw the bet! All we want is just to look at Ami-chan when she's
like this, right!?"
"Yeeeaaah!!", roared some of the boys in agreement. They turned their eyes towards the
pool and stared at Ami with her snow-white skin. Ami quickly ducked into the water and
yelled loudly, "Give that back to me! You bastards!"
"Seriously, these perverts! Out of the way! Here, Ami-chan! Catch!"
"Good job, Maya-chan!"
Maya had dashed into the crowd of men and retrieved the bikini. Rushing towards Ami,
"Ami-chan! I'm on my way to help you!"
"I'm coming too!"
"Yeah right! Since the wager, the bikini, and Ami-chan's white skin all belong to me!"
"I'll be the one who'll trigger a special relationship event with her!"
"Noooo!!!"
The swarm of fools with their twisted thoughts all jumped into the pool with their own
agendas. Minori blew her whistle hysterically and yelled,
"Hey! You guys there! Stop getting near the athlete! I'll arrest you for sexual harassment!
Hey! Dammit! Listen to what people are saying!"
But nobody heeded her warnings.
"I've got Ami-chan's swimsuit!"
"Give it to me!"
"Ami-chan you alright? Are you hurt?"
"Kyaa! Stay away! Stay away! Stay away!!! I SAID STAY AWAY FROM ME! Which part of
that do you goons not understand!?"
"A, Ami...chan...?"
"Did I... just hear... a scary voice...?"
"Oh my~ I wonder what that was~!"
The girls looked at each other, and all of them stood up in indignation, "Unforgivable!"
"You guys behave yourselves!"
"You bunch of perverts!"
As the girls tired to drag the boys out of the pool and away from Ami, another group of boys
had jumped into the pool. "Time to join the battle!" "This party is too fun to miss!" "You
come along as well!" Even Haruta and Noto had jumped in, pushing Kitamura in as well.
Standing dumbstruck by the poolside, Ryuuji unexpectedly made eye contact with the main
character, who was situated outside the brawl for the bikini.
Even in such a predicament, Ami still managed to find the mood to smile to Ryuuji,
"Hee hee, wanna look~?"
"This idiot!"
She slightly moved apart her arms that were covering her bust... She's actually still pretty
much in control, isn't she?
Her black bikini flew behind her in the air like a strange-looking bird. "Hand it over!" "Don't
let the guys grab it!" As if playing water volleyball, the girls elegantly passed the bikini

Toradora!:Volume3 96

back to Ami.
"Ami-chan! Here! Catch!"
"Great work! Thanks!"
The bikini had returned to Ami's hand. She quickly submerged into the water, and by the
time she resurfaced, she had put back on the bikini. She wasted no time in anymore small
talk, and set off to close Taiga's lead.
Everyone turned their attention towards Ami, except Ryuuji, who was looking at Taiga. Is
Taiga swimming properly? Is she moving smoothly and not drowning? Is she gonna get
clumsy again? Could she be troubled by anything? Though he had such a fall out with her
last night, he just couldn't help but be worried.
"Ugh!?"
Ryuuji exclaimed as though choking on something.
Taiga was indeed beating on the water, but a second after Ryuuji looked at her, her tiny
figure suddenly disappeared into the water.
No one noticed Ryuuji standing up and diving determinedly into the pool, swimming as fast
as he could.
I only saw Taiga's hands beating on the surface, she must be drowning! But she's got her
floating board, so how...!? Just why!? Ryuuji thought as he swam, knowing he could only get
the answers to his questions by asking Taiga himself.
"Taiga!? You alright!? How'd you manage to drown!?"
Ryuuji tried to hold her up, allowing her face to come above the surface, but Taiga kept
swinging her limbs vigorously. Although she was drowning, she still attempted to push off
Ryuuji's hands. Her face twisted in pain, while tears welled up in her red eyes as she
seemed like she wanted to say something...
"Let me go! Get lost!"
"How can I possibly let you go like this!?"
"You talk too much! I hate... ow ow ow ow ow!"
"What's wrong!?"
"M, my leg's cramped up!"
"Well, this is payback for using dirty tricks!"
As Ryuuji attempted to signal to Minori to cancel the match as Taiga could no longer
continue...
"Leave me alone! I can still swim! Gimme the floating board!"
Although her face was already contorting in pain, Taiga coughed a few times in order to
adjust her breathing. She then pushed off Ryuuji's hand and grabbed on the floating board,
barely managing to kick the water with her cramped right foot.
"Y, you still want to continue!?"
Taiga's glittering eyes only looked forward,
"Yeah!"
"But you..."
Didn't you say it's got nothing to do with me? Haven't you already said this is just to make
the 'stupid chihuahua' look foolish? If that's the case, then haven't you already made her

Toradora!:Volume3 97

look foolish enough? Taiga looked menacingly at Ryuuji's speechless face,

"You happy now!?"

"Wha...?"

"Don't 'wha' me! Your master is working hard for you, so you ought to look happy for a bit!
You stupid dim-witted dog!"

Continuing forward, Taiga no longer had any strength left to talk. Without hesitation,
Ryuuji grabbed Taiga's waist and said,

"Then go! It's fine if you want me to wag my tail or whatever!"

He thrust Taiga forward. Using the momentum, Taiga once again kicked the water and
swam forward. However, an unexpected accident happened...

As everyone became embroiled in the battle for the bikini, they were now all inside the
pool, engaged in a messy brawl. There were splashes everywhere created by people either
jumping in or being pushed into the water.

While Taiga sped on ahead, Ryuuji ended up being pressed into the water by the crowd.

"Eeeh!? R, Ryuuji!?"

"Blublublub..."

Not knowing whether his head got hit by someone's elbow or knee, Ryuuji felt himself
losing strength... He knew he was sinking... The last thing he saw Taiga making huge
splashes and turning around towards him, looking at him with those huge round eyes of
hers. Ryuuji felt the shouting around had become even more intense, as well as knowing
that no one had noticed him.

"No way! Ryuuji! Ryuuji!!!"

Taiga's voice was becoming faint, while he was losing his breath... Or not, as he could now
breathe again.

His motionless body had been forcefully lifted and placed on the floating board. That's how
it seemed to him anyway.

"Somebody! Help! ... Anyone! ...Cough! ...Cough cough! Dammit---!"

The tiny hand that held onto him seemed reliable, but his arm was completely paralyzed
and his vision blurry. Is this what they call a concussion? Although he knew of such a thing,
it didn't really help to change anything. He could only rely on that hand clinging him onto
the board. He couldn't even lift his head up.

Ryuuji slid from the swinging board back into the water, and drank the icy pool water... As
he was about to drown, a tiny hand grabbed him tightly on the neck, and warmly held onto
his chin. From his skin touching the water, he could sense himself moving slowly forward.

Barely able to open his eyelids, the scene he saw was even more amazing than the swinging
that he had felt, as the first thing he saw was...

"Sob..."

Taiga was crying. Even so, she would not let go of her hand on Ryuuji's neck. Even when
she herself was close to sinking, she still clung desperately onto her floating board, wading
towards the finishing point. Even when it came to this, she was still unwilling to surrender.
Even though she was crying like a child, she wouldn't give up without a fight.

Yet behind them there was something that was moving at a very fast speed... much like a
dolphin. Someone yelled, "Why is Takasu now racing together with the tiger!?" "Whoa!

Toradora!:Volume3 98

Overtaken!" "Takasu, you bastard!" "Come on! Ami-chan!"
No matter what anyone said, Ryuuji, only semi-conscious, could not respond. He knew the
dolphin had sped past them before his eyes. Under the hoarse, cheering voices, Ami had
swam past the clumsy floating board duo with relative ease.
"Finish! Justice prevails!!!"
Ami seemed to have said something.
At the same time Ami said that, the tiny hand holding onto the board also lost its grip. The
cheering had only begun when it stopped again. Someone said,
"... Are Takasu and the tiger drowning?"
Yeah.
We're drowning.
Or to be more precise... Taiga, whose leg was now more painful than before, had used her
last ounce of strength to place Ryuuji onto the floating board as she slowly sank into the
water.
"NO WAY!?"
Ami yelled in dismay. SPLOOSH! Something large had dived into the water. It was very
huge, and very firm...
Muscle Kuro was faced with a huge crisis as a PE teacher.
"Cough... cough cough cough!"
Being dragged to the surface, Taiga knelt in pain on the ground and coughed.
Beside her, Ryuuji still remained in a state of semi-consciousness as he lay on the poolside,
not even moving a finger. Voices could be heard from afar,
"Is Takasu alright?"
"He's still breathing!"
"Good, let's take him to the school clinic!"
No, I'm fine... My lungs have finally inhaled some fresh oxygen, so my blurry mind has
become quite clear now. Ryuuji attempted to move his elbow to motion to everyone not to
worry about him...
"DON'T TOUCH HIM!!!"
Slightly opening his eyes, he saw something he did not expect - Taiga's hair was standing
up, her eyes were bloodshot. She actually looked as threatening like a tiger as she crouched
over Ryuuji.
"You idiots, you idiots, you idiots, you idiots! ALL OF YOU ARE IDIOTS!!! Why didn't anyone
notice? Why didn't anyone come help? Stay away you idiots! Idiots! IDIOTS!!! Get lost! I
hate you! Back off, back off, BACK OFF, YOU MORONS!!!"
She had gone ballistic. Though her muscles could hardly compare to those of Muscle Kuro,
who retreated backwards, the girl known as the tiger had gone ballistic.
"ARRRRRGGGGGHHHHH!!!" Giving out an angry roar like a wild beast, she yelled while
crying tearfully,

Toradora!:Volume3 99

"RYUUJI IS MIIIIINE!!! NOBODY TOUCHES HIM!!!"
The students of Class 2-C were silent.
The mid-summer pool was devoid of any sound.
The sunlight shining from the blue sky was scorching
hot.
"... Hmm...? Eh...?"
Taiga finally noticed the meaning of what she had just
exclaimed...
Let me just pretend for a little longer! Ryuuji gave up
on thinking and shut his eyes tightly, throwing away all
thoughts.

But Ryuuji just could not pretend to be completely
unconscious, since he was smiling. I'm glad. That was
how he really felt.

I feel really glad, hearing Taiga shout that. And then...
yeah, I've always been glad all along...
Whether it was Taiga grabbing my hand and hiding me behind her back...
Or not wanting me to go to Ami's mansion...
Or saying she'll practice hard even when it's raining...
As well as getting mad when she saw Ami and I embrace each other.
Although I never realized this until now, it was more satisfying than anything else. I was
very angry when Taiga said she didn't give a damn, and got into a fight with her as a result
of that. But now, I can finally smile.
You said I ought to look happy for a bit, right? Well, Taiga, I am happy... All along, from the
beginning until now, I've always been...
"Yikes!"
"T, Takasu seems to be up to no good!"
"Let's get outta here!!!"
"Man, that was hell!"
SMACK!
"H, hey! ... You alright?"
Taiga had suddenly smacked her head onto the table. She only revealed two sharp eyes as
she glared murderously at Ryuuji,
"How can I be... alright!?"
Her deep voice carried a tinge of depression... Even the Palmtop Tiger had been battered
badly by the two-week end of semester exams that had taken place right after the last
swimming lesson, though the true reason was the psychological damage that she had
suffered as a result of the event.
Both Taiga and Ryuuji were now resting on their usual sofa seats in the non-smoking
section of the family restaurant that they frequented. It was already noon when the end of
semester ceremony had ended. There were hardly any customers, probably because it was
a normal weekday.

Toradora!:Volume3 100

Not concerned with the gazes around them, Taiga lifted her feet like a child and
admonished Ryuuji, who sat opposite her,

"This is all your fault, you stupid dog! I wouldn't have gotten into so much trouble if it
weren't for you! Now pass the menu!"

Unable to respond, Ryuuji could only obediently hand over the menu.

Maybe I did get Taiga involved in so much trouble. This was all because of that declaration.
Everyone heard Taiga proclaim "Ryuuji is mine!" This lead everyone to be absolutely
convinced that Taiga and Ryuuji were now officially a couple.

No matter how hard Taiga tried to deny or threaten her way out of it, she just could not get
everyone to think otherwise. Even Kitamura and Minori said jokingly, "You two have a long
way to go!" "So, you've finally admitted it, haven't you?"

"May I please take your order? Hee hee, it's only noon and you two are already so
lovey-dovey!"

This voice...

"Minorin! Stop that! Haven't I told you to stop mentioning that!? You're so mean!"

"Sorry! Sorry! I was just kidding! So don't cry!"

Minori had arrived at work early, and had already put on her orange waitress uniform, but
was now cuddling Taiga's head with the tray she was carrying. She then looked at Ryuuji
and said,

"Oh dear..."

"You were the one that made her cry!"

"Did I? Nyaha!"

"Don't 'nyaha' me! Get back to work!"

... Just kidding. Ryuuji and Minori's friendship had developed to the point where they could
fool around in their conversations.

Ryuuji looked at Minori's smiling face and thought about how dazzling she looked. He knew
he couldn't look directly at her, but... there were voices in his heart telling him that he no
longer just had a simple crush on Minori... No, it's still a crush, but...

The reason for those voices was the little fellow pouting before him, reluctantly allowing
Minori to pat her head. Ryuuji had been troubled ever since the incident at the swimming
pool.

First, it concerned himself. Ryuuji was really happy at Taiga's "Ryuuji is mine" declaration.
He was so happy that he could not hide it, because it was real. Yet there comes a blind spot
with feeling, and that is... I like Taiga. If I didn't, I wouldn't have taken care of her. After all,
I was the one that said "the dragon is the only beast that can stand equal to a tiger since
ancient times"...

But this feeling of liking people, it's not limited to romance between a man and a woman, is
it? Like friendship or family, aren't there many types of feelings for liking people? So our
feelings for each other must belong to one of those! So this is just me being fond of Taiga,
and that is good. After thinking on his own, he made his own conclusions. So it's good this
way... the question now is, what about Taiga?

How did Taiga feel when she yelled "Ryuuji is mine"? Could it be... could it be... Ryuuji
continued to be entwined in thought, and ended up getting so worked up that his stomach